Press Release

Οn May 7th, an artistic evening for the collector Mr. Dimitris Daskalopoulos was held with great success at the residence of the Consul General of New York, on the occasion of the Guggenheim Museum’s event in honor of the Greek collector for his important donation. A large part from the D. Daskalopoulos Collection of contemporary art is donated to 4 museums in 3 countries on 2 continents, creating an innovative network of synergies.

During his greeting, the Consul General of Greece in New York, Mr. Dinos Konstantinou, expressed his deep gratitude to the collector Dimitris Daskalopoulos, a brilliant businessman and collector, a visionary who decided to donate a large part of his collection of modern art in public, world-class institutions around the world. With the donation of his private collection, 350 works by 142 international artists will be given to several leading global institutions. Of these, 100 works will be given jointly to the Guggenheim Museum and the Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago, 110 to the Tate Modern in London and 140 to the National Museum of Contemporary Art in Athens. Mr. Daskalopoulos' fascinating collection includes works by Louise Bourgeois, Marina Abramović, Helen Chadwick, Sarah Lucas, Matthew Barney, Vlasis Kaniaris, Stathis Logothetis and Yiannis Kounelis, as well as other renowned artists.

Mr. Konstantinou also emphasized that Mr. Daskalopoulos' sense of responsibility towards his art collection is remarkable, as he realizes that works of art have a life of their own, as they exist through the eyes of the beholder, independently of their owner and that art can only have meaning and influence when interacting with the public, as art is a human right, and a basic human need. Mr. Daskalopoulos brilliantly captures the idea that turning a private collection into a public exhibit allows his collection to live forever, to be constantly interpreted by the public, and thus to become a source of inspiration and reflection, creating unexpected connections between time and space.

Afterwards, Mr. Daskalopoulos, taking the floor, said that for him collecting works of art was not an act of thought and decision, but was a natural result of a continuous process, as he was fascinated by Art from a very early age. Personally, he enjoyed the Journey into art, which became magical over time. "When you're a collector, you're not just a collector, you're an art lover," he emphasized.

Gradually, Mr. Daskalopoulos developed the belief that he is not really the owner of each work and that the work first belongs to the artist, but also that the creator belongs to the beholder that engages with it. So, this process over the years created the belief in Mr. Daskalopoulos that his collection would go to public institutions.

“These works of art need to be judged, they need to be preserved, they need to be in constant dialogue with art, and no single collector or private institution can do that in the long term. Only in public museums does this happen," he added.

The event was attended by several Greek and Greek-American artists and creators, as well as representatives of important American museums and galleries.