john bock's tentacle sculpture sprawls out of lincoln convertible at 'dream on' exhibition

‘DREAM ON’ exhibition activates Public Tobacco Factory in Athens

For a second consecutive year, Greek organization NEON collaborates with the Hellenic Parliament to bring life to the emblematic building of the former Public Tobacco Factory in Athens and present ‘Dream On’, a contemporary art exhibition that celebrates art in the public space.

Curated by Dimitris Paleocrassas, the project brings together numerous large-scale pieces from the D.Daskalopoulos Collection, including John Bock’s sculptural tentacle installation sprawling out of a finely restored Lincoln convertible. Other works include Paul McCarthy’s Tomato-Head sculpture, Thomas Hirschhorn’s cave constructed of tape, cardboard, books, posters and cans, as well as Damien Hirst’s ‘Greetings from the Gutter’ made of colorful gas cylinders. 

The artworks by both Greek and international creators will all be donated to four museums in three countries over two continents, namely the Greek National Museum of Contemporary Art (EMST), Tate, and jointly to the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum and the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago.

Michael Landy (b. 1963, London, UK), Credit Card Destroying Machine, 2010, Mixed media, 600 x 300 x 300 cm & John Bock (b. 1965, Gribbohm, Germany), Palms, 2007, Installation and video, 59:14 minutes, Edition of 1 and 2 AP (#1/1) © John Bock Courtesy the artist and Anton Kern Gallery, New York

image © designboom 
(head image © Natalia Tsoukala, courtesy of NEON)

realization of a great dream

This is the first time that such a large number of large-scale works from the D.Daskalopoulos Collection is on display in Greece, gathered in the publicly accessible area of the former Public Tobacco Factory. According to curator Dimitris Paleocrassas, ‘Dream On’ is permeated by a sense of abundance brought about by the realization of a great dream: an artist’s grand but elusive goal, accomplished through the unrestrained creativity of large-scale installations.

Similarly, through the D.Daskalopoulos Collection Gift, the dream of its owner becomes a reality: a private collection transformed into a public good to be preserved for future generations of audience and artists. Dream On features 18 large-scale installations by John Bock, Helen Chadwick, Abraham Cruzvillegas, Martha Dimitropoulou, Peter Fischli & David Weiss, David Hammons, Thomas Hirschhorn, Damien Hirst, Michael Landy, Maria Loizidou, Paul McCarthy, Annette Messager, Maro Michalakakos, Wangechi Mutu, Paul Pfeiffer, Alexandros Psychoulis, Matthew Ritchie and Anna-Maria Samara.

In addition, Kostas Ioannidis, a new commission by NEON, creates a large-scale audio work delivered in whistling language. Alongside the installations are 20 artist’s drawings of some of the works prior to their creation.

John Bock (b. 1965, Gribbohm, Germany), Palms, 2007, Installation and video, 59:14 minutes, Edition of 1 and 2 AP (#1/1) © John Bock Courtesy the artist and Anton Kern Gallery, New York

image © designboom 

Michael Landy (b. 1963, London, UK) Credit Card Destroying Machine, 2010, Mixed media, 600 x 300 x 300 cm, Installation View Dream On, 2022 | Hellenic Parliament + NEON at the former Public Tobacco Factory, Athens

image © Natalia Tsoukala, courtesy of NEON

Damien Hirst, (b. 1965, Bristol, UK), Greetings from the Gutter/Avoiding the Inevitable, 1994, Glass, painted steel, silicone rubber, gas cylinders,regulators, brass and rubber tubing, acrylic, MDF, gas masks, saline bags, intravenous lines, drainage pouches, needle and hook, Dimensions variable, © Damien Hirst and Science Ltd. All rights reserved, DACS 2022, Installation View Dream On, 2022 | Hellenic Parliament + NEON at the former Public Tobacco Factory, Athens

image © Natalia Tsoukala, courtesy of NEON

Annette Messager, (b. 1943, Berck-sur-Mer, France), Dependance/Independance, 1995/6, Wool, various fabrics, b/w photographs under glass, mirrors, colour pencils, nets, stuffed animals, paper and cardboard, plastic, ropes, Dimensions variable, Installation View Dream On, 2022 | Hellenic Parliament + NEON at the former Public Tobacco Factory, Athens

image © Natalia Tsoukala, courtesy of NEON

(from left) Anna-Maria Samara, (b. 1992, Thessaloniki, Greece), Untitled, 2016 (Detail), Twine and wire hex fence, modular work, (6 modules), Approx. 200 × 500 cm & Alexandros Psychoulis, (b. 1966, Volos, Greece), The Room, 2009 (detail), White and black yarn, bench, sound, Dimensions variable, Installation View Dream On, 2022 | Hellenic Parliament + NEON at the former Public Tobacco Factory, Athens

image © Natalia Tsoukala, courtesy of NEON

Alexandros Psychoulis, (b. 1966, Volos, Greece), The Room, 2009 (detail), White and black yarn, bench, sound, Dimensions variable, Installation View Dream On, 2022 | Hellenic Parliament + NEON at the former Public Tobacco Factory, Athens

image © designboom

Helen Chadwick, (1953-1996, London, UK), Piss Flowers 1-12, 1991, Bronze, cellulose lacquer and hand woven carpet, 12 parts, approx. 70 × 65 × 65 cm each, Installation View Dream On, 2022 | Hellenic Parliament + NEON at the former Public Tobacco Factory, Athens

image © Natalia Tsoukala, courtesy of NEON

Martha Dimitropoulou, (b. 1972, Athens, Greece), MERCEDES S500, 2013, Pine needles, wood, wire, 1.60 × 5.5 × 2.4 m, Installation View Dream On, 2022 | Hellenic Parliament + NEON at the former Public Tobacco Factory, Athens

image © Natalia Tsoukala, courtesy of NEON

Paul McCarthy, (b. 1945, Salt Lake City, Utah, USA), Tomato Head (Burgundy), 1994, Fiberglass, aluminum, urethane rubber, cloth, plexiglass, 213.3 x 139.7 x 111.7 cm, Installation View Dream On, 2022 | Hellenic Parliament + NEON at the former Public Tobacco Factory, Athens

image © designboom

Thomas Hirschhorn, (b. 1957, Bern, Switzerland), Cavemanman, 2002 (detail), Installation: wood, cardboard, tape, aluminum foil, books, posters, videos of Lascaux 2, dolls, cans, shelves, fluorescent light fixtures, Dimensions variable © Thomas Hirschhorn & Maria Loizidou, (b. 1958, Limassol, Cyprus), Trauma / War Loot, 2000, Mixed media, Dimensions variable & Michael Landy (b. 1963, London, UK), Credit Card Destroying Machine, 2010 (detail), Mixed media 600 x 300 x 300 cm, Installation View Dream On, 2022 | Hellenic Parliament + NEON at the former Public Tobacco Factory, Athens

image © Natalia Tsoukala, courtesy of NEON

Thomas Hirschhorn, (b. 1957, Bern, Switzerland), Cavemanman, 2002 (detail), Installation: wood, cardboard, tape, aluminum foil, books, posters, videos of Lascaux 2, dolls, cans, shelves, fluorescent light fixtures, Dimensions variable © Thomas Hirschhorn

image © designboom

Thomas Hirschhorn, (b. 1957, Bern, Switzerland), Cavemanman, 2002 (detail), Installation: wood, cardboard, tape, aluminum foil, books, posters, videos of Lascaux 2, dolls, cans, shelves, fluorescent light fixtures, Dimensions variable © Thomas Hirschhorn

image © designboom

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project info: 

name: Dream On
organization: NEON in collaboration with the Hellenic Parliament
curation: Dimitris Paleocrassas
location: Public Tobacco Factory | 218 Lenorman St. 104 43, Athens

dates: 08/06/2022 – 27/11/2022