Jet packs, hover boards and robot maids. That future has yet to come true. But The New Future, now on
view at DCAC, gives us a glimpse into what our next future holds, while reflecting on what didn’t come to pass. Curated by Kristina Bilonick, the exhibit brings together a collection of four artists and their eclectic mix of old and new, pointing out disappointment in what could have been and small wisps of hope for a possible new future.

On opening night, the new future was so bright that sunglasses were handed out, both in reference to a one hit wonder and our rapidly depleting environment that now causes us to wear protective eye gear. Urban Scout, a “rewilder,” taught rope making in his teepee (or "tipi") and demonstrated how to make fire in the alley behind the SunTrust Bank.

The tipi, which Scout once used for shelter, dominates the gallery. It is draped in caution tape and is constructed with PVC pipe, a very modern material. Amateur picture collages of his rewilding journey are set against bright neon backgrounds. Cases containing his tools are displayed like in the Natural History Museum, with the tools laid out in a glass case with a corresponding “map” naming the instruments.

The shocking colors found in Scout’s picture collages are carried into the work of Benjamin Edwards, a local artist. In What and Sera, Edwards portrays chaotic worlds of pixelized color and harsh geometric shapes. A pathway leads your eye down the center of the compositions suggestive of a video game in the midst of play.

Across from the tipi is a video installation from JoWonder, called My Last Breath (pictured). The installation is made of three television sets, perched one on top of the other. A character climbs a ladder to the stars in each screen, but never reaches a destination, bringing to mind The Little Prince in search of a friend.

The starkest visual in the exhibit, which highlights the abandonment of the once future, is the series of photographs by Jade Doskow. All of her photographs displayed here are of past World’s Fair structures as they are today. She presents these once great buildings in poignant compositions tinged with nostalgia. Many suffer from disrepair and neglect. In A World View: A New Humanism, Doskow shows the Atomium, the key fixture of the 1958's World's Fair in Brussels, fighting for attention with a contemporary café.

Picture of My Last Breath courtesy of Beth Ferraro

The New Future is on display now until January 13, 2008. DCAC is located at 2438 18th Street NW and is open Wednesday through Sunday, 2 p.m. to 7 p.m.