Being private offers complete freedom for curators and owners to do what they want without having to work within the parameters and budgets of governments or boards of trustees. But what they offer in the way of freedom is often experienced by only a privileged few, because these institutions have little or no obligation to allow the public access.
One of the most ambitious and interesting such spaces is the Karpidas Collection in the Design District. Situated in a purpose-built building (rather than a re-purposed warehouse or power plant), the building houses the Karpidas Foundation, its collection and large-scale private gallery spaces for varying installations from the collection.
The Karpidas Collection was formed in Great Britain and Greece by Pauline Karpidas, the British widow of Greek shipping magnate Constantine Karpidas, and her Dallas-based son and daughter-in-law, Elisabeth and Panos Karpidas. Elisabeth is the executive director of the Karpidas Family Foundation. With more than 1,000 works located in Dallas, the foundation has worked with three curators to mount three successive exhibitions drawn exclusively from the collection.”
