The DESTE Foundation for Contemporary Art is pleased to announce an Open Call for Greek and Cypriot artists aged under 33 years old to participate in the exhibition Y2K that will take place at the Foundation’s exhibition space in Nea Ionia, Athens, Greece from May 26th to October 27th, 2027.
This initiative aims to support and showcase contemporary artistic practices by providing a crucial platform for artists at an important stage in their professional development. Artists working across all disciplines—including, but not limited to, painting, sculpture, photography, video (potential works to be shown exclusively on a TV monitor), installation art, digital art, and interdisciplinary practices—are invited to submit their work.
The call encourages dynamic, forward-thinking young artists to present projects that explore our changing world through the unique perspectives of a new generation.
|Who Can Apply?|
Applicants must be born in 1994 or later and be practicing artists working in any contemporary artistic medium. Applicants should be available to participate in the project during the specified period.
|Submission Requirements|
Applicants are requested to submit:
• A up-to-date CV that also includes contact details and links to relevant websites and/or social media platforms.
• A portfolio of recent work.
• An artist’s statement.
• A proposal for the work intended for presentation in the exhibition, together with a statement addressing the proposed work.
• All text to be submitted in English.
|Submission Process|
All materials must be submitted in PDF format to the DESTE Foundation for Contemporary Art. Files should be organized in a single folder, clearly labelled with the applicant’s full name, and uploaded via the link below.
| SUBMIT HERE! |
Application deadline: January 15th, 2027
Only applications received through the above-mentioned link will be considered.
|Selection Process|
Submissions will be reviewed by an independent international selection committee, which will select the participating artists.
The committee comprises:
• Cecilia Alemani, Curator; Donald R. Mullen Jr. Director & Chief Curator, The High Line, New York
• Daniel Birnbaum, Curator & Creative Director, Acute Art
• Maurizio Cattelan, Artist
• Jeffrey Deitch, Art Dealer, Deitch Projects; curator
• Elena Filipovic, Director, Kunstmuseum Basel; curator
• Massimiliano Gioni, Toby Devan Lewis Director, New Museum for Contemporary Art, New York; curator
• Dakis Joannou, Collector; President, DESTE Foundation for Contemporary Art
The call will lead to a selection of about 20 to 25 artists.
Selected artists will be notified by the end of March 2027.
|The Exhibition|
The selected artworks will be presented in the group exhibition Y2K at the DESTE Foundation for Contemporary Art in Nea Ionia, Athens, Greece.
The installation of the works will be carried out by the DESTE Foundation in collaboration with Massimiliano Gioni, Toby Devan Lewis Director of the New Museum for Contemporary Art, New York.
Successful applicants will receive €2,500 intended to cover the artist fee, production costs, and the costs of delivering and collecting the work from the DESTE Foundation.
For further information, please contact us at info@deste.gr.
|Open Call Timeline|
Application deadline: January 15th, 2027
Selection announcement: end of March 2027
Exhibition opening date: May 26th, 2027
Exhibition duration: May 27th–October 27th, 2027
