Deste Foundation

The Deste Foundation, Centre for Contemporary Art is an arts foundation located in Nea Ionia, a northern suburb of Athens, Greece. Established in 1983 by Greek businessman and collector Dakis Joannou, it houses his personal art collection and operates as a significant venue for contemporary art in Greece. The foundation's name derives from the Greek word δέστε (deste), meaning "to see." Beyond its permanent space in Nea Ionia, the foundation maintains a satellite location on the island of Hydra and has built an international reputation through its exhibitions, commissions, and the biannual Deste Prize for contemporary art.

Dakis Joannou established the Deste Foundation in 1983, initially to explore the relationship between contemporary art and contemporary culture. Notably, Joannou had not yet begun collecting art at the time of the foundation's creation. For its first fifteen years, the foundation operated without a permanent exhibition space; during this period, shows in Athens were hosted at the House of Cyprus. In 1998, the foundation moved to its first permanent location, a former paper factory in Neo Psychiko that American architect Christian Hubert redesigned. This building had originally been constructed as a sock factory in 1931. In 2006, architect Christos Papoulias renovated the structure that now serves as the foundation's current building in Nea Ionia. By the end of 2009, the foundation had supported or exhibited works by 600 artists. The foundation also publishes Toiletpaper, a photo magazine, in collaboration with artist Maurizio Cattelan.

The Deste Foundation houses the Dakis Collection, Joannou's personal collection of contemporary art. The collection serves as the core around which the foundation programs exhibitions and commissions new work. The foundation's activities span both emerging and established international contemporary artists, with a particular emphasis on commissioning new productions rather than merely displaying existing works. Its programming has included major thematic and collection-based exhibitions curated by prominent figures in the contemporary art world. The foundation also maintains an extensive archive devoted to Greek artists and a specialized library, supporting its broader educational mission.

While specific works in the Dakis Collection are not catalogued in detail in available sources, the foundation's exhibition history reveals the scope and caliber of its holdings. Curators Massimiliano Gioni and Jeffrey Deitch have organized overviews of the collection. In 2010, the New Museum of Contemporary Art in New York presented a three-story exhibition drawn from the foundation's collection, with Jeff Koons serving as guest curator. For the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, the foundation organized "monument to now," a major exhibition featuring more than 60 artists from Joannou's collection. In 2014, Polish artist Pawel Althamer created a notable installation at the foundation, transforming the exhibition space into a toy house populated by puppets modeled on himself and the Joannou family, including detailed likenesses of Dakis and Lietta Joannou with their characteristic hairstyles and tattoos.

The Deste Foundation's main building in Nea Ionia originated as a sock factory built in 1931. After the foundation acquired the site, it underwent two significant transformations. American architect Christian Hubert first redesigned the former paper factory for the foundation's opening in 1998. In 2006, Greek architect Christos Papoulias renovated the building to create its current configuration. The foundation also operates a second site on the island of Hydra, located in a former slaughterhouse. Since the 1980s, this Hydra location has hosted an annual summer series of contemporary art exhibitions, providing a distinctive setting that contrasts with the industrial heritage of the mainland venue.

The Deste Foundation is located in Nea Ionia, within the North Athens Regional Unit of Greece. Its official website is www.deste.gr. The foundation is privately held under the ownership of Dakis Joannou. In addition to its exhibition program at the Nea Ionia space, the foundation has developed partnerships with other Greek cultural institutions to expand its public reach. Since 2009, it has collaborated with the Athens-based Goulandris Museum of Cycladic Art to co-organize annual exhibitions featuring artists shortlisted for the Deste Prize. In 2014, the foundation launched a partnership with the Benaki Museum in Athens, an institution renowned for its collection of ancient Greek and Roman art, to present contemporary art exhibitions. Most exhibitions are accompanied by publications that support the foundation's educational objectives.