“The climate has changed; it is purely commerce, an asset class. There is an aspect of showing off and a bit of decoration,” prominent businessman Dakis Joannou revealed when asked about the changing landscape of art collecting.
In a conversation with Marco Veremis during a video podcast at Innovative Greeks, Joannou delves into his past and discusses following in his family’s footsteps, especially those of his father, Stelios Joannou, co-founder of construction company J&P. The company is responsible for some of the most noteworthy projects in the Middle East and the Mediterranean, including Abu Dhabi International Airport and the Rio-Antirio Bridge in Greece, as well as multiple power plants and mega dams in Cyprus, including the Vassiliko, Moni and Dhekelia power generation plants.
Businessman Dakis Joannou is now a prominent figure in the international business sphere, which spans construction, hospitality and major consumer goods distribution, as well as contemporary art collecting.
He also discussed life in 1960s America, creating the DESTE Foundation for Contemporary Art and his encounters with the artists who shaped his relationship with contemporary art.
On technology and AI, he said: “Consciousness and feelings are the main elements which AI will never be able to acquire, which is why it is also a very big danger, and the reason we keep having this conversation. It is something that worries me.” He emphasised that we might reach a stage at which we will not be able to control it.
Watch the interview below.
