About
The art of tomorrow today
PHI is a not-for-profit organization presenting art exhibitions and events with the mission of bringing art to everyone through meaningful experiences with art.
Photo: Vivien Gaumand
For over 20 years, PHI has been at the forefront of important transformations, at the intersection of art, technology and human nature, creating spaces for dialogue and exploration, enabling -us to connect with ourselves and others in an authentic and sustainable way.
The public is as central to art as art is to the public. Aiming for accessibility, PHI connects with a wide and varied set of creative practitioners and audiences through its range of programming, production activities and the many opportunities generated by its initiatives. Engaging with a broad set of perspectives is paramount to PHI, not only as an imperative of our era, but also because it is fundamental to PHI’s mission.
Our Mission
Engaging with the most relevant ideas of our time through art and culture.
The History of PHI
Birth of the Idea
The 80s and 90s
Phoebe Greenberg draws inspiration from the Fondation Cartier for her idea of a foundation for contemporary art in Montreal, called DHC/ART (Diving Horse Creations). The wish of its foundation was to create a unique exhibition center in Montreal, offering the best of world contemporary art, on a human scale.
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Creation of the Foundation
2007
Opening of DHC/ART at 451 Saint-Jean Street in Old Montréal.
“From the beginning, I wanted the exhibition space to present the most engaging works of the contemporary art world, and foster a better understanding of the works to create a unique experience for the public. That’s why each exhibition also has film screenings, talks and an education program, all offered for free.”
– Phoebe Greenberg
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Creation of the Centre
2012
Opening of the PHI Centre at 407 Saint-Pierre Street, a multidisciplinary space at the crossroads of art, technology and sound.
"With the opening of the PHI Centre in 2012, I wanted to create a space where new technologies and artistic disciplines could meet, intertwine, and reinvent themselves. From the very beginning, my ambition was to explore the boundaries of creation, experiment with new formats, and offer audiences immersive experiences that push the limits of perception. The PHI Centre was born from this vision: to provide a space for innovation where art, technology, and public engagement are in constant evolution."
– Phoebe Greenberg
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PHI Evolution
2019
DHC/ART changes its name to PHI Foundation for Contemporary Art to unite all its activities in the field of arts and culture under a single banner.
“As a concept, “Phi” is the basis of the “golden ratio” or “divine proportions” that inform aesthetics in art, architecture, as well as the human body.”
– Phoebe Greenberg
Launch of PHI Studio for the creation and distribution of immersive experiences.
"With the creation of PHI Studio in 2019, we wanted to take our commitment to new technologies even further. We envisioned a space dedicated to the production and distribution of works that transcend traditional formats, ranging from experimental experiences to large-scale location-based entertainment (LBE) productions. Our ambition was clear: to support artists in their exploration of new technologies and to bring these works beyond our walls, onto the international stage. Today, PHI Studio is a catalyst, a conduit for immersive experiences that resonate around the world."
– Phoebe Greenberg
2021
Launch of Habitat Sonore, an immersive listening room, in the building at 407 Saint-Pierre Street.
2021 - 2025
The PHI Contemporary project launched, bringing together all PHI's cultural offerings under one roof.
In preparation for PHI Contemporary, the entities PHI Foundation for Contemporary Art and PHI Centre were gathered to offer the public a unified cultural experience, driven by a common mission.
Photo: © Kuehn Malvezzi + Pelletier de Fontenay, Visualization: Secchi Smith
PHI Contemporary
A new space for art and culture
PHI Contemporary will consolidate the full breadth of PHI's public cultural offer - currently distributed between 407 Saint-Pierre Street, 451 Saint-Jean Street and 465 Saint-Jean Street - under one roof.
Land Acknowledgment
We would like to acknowledge that PHI is located on unceded Indigenous lands. The Kanien’kehà:ka Nation is recognized as the custodian of the lands and waters on which PHI operates today. Tiohtià:ke/Montreal is historically known as a gathering place for many First Nations. Today, it is home to a diverse population of Indigenous and other peoples. We respect the continued connections with the past, present and future in our ongoing relationships with Indigenous and other peoples within the Montréal community.
Sustainability According to PHI
PHI understands that its commitment to sustainability can be its legacy. It is integral to its role as a cultural leader—and its promise to the next generation. It recognizes the three pillars of sustainability—environmental, social and economic, but also proposes that we recognize the importance of both technological and cultural sustainability. Technological and cultural sustainability represent a progressive understanding of the ways in which the world and our values are evolving.
PHI approaches its actions, projects, and policies through a desire to better understand and address the depletion of our natural resources and the urgency of climate change. It aims to bridge the gap between our rational and emotional perspectives in order to foster empathy and prompt collective action towards finding a holistic ecological balance.
PHI recognizes its responsibility as a cultural institution to take authentic and deliberate steps for social and cultural change towards equity, dignity and accessibility for all people. This is reflected in the way it approaches its staff, audiences and programming. Accessibility (physical, sociological and technological) and a commitment to the critical exploration of the human condition are central to its mission, and essential to its creative endeavours.
PHI’s fundamental project is to create an infrastructure for creative practitioners, transcultural perspectives, and the relational potential between communities, as a means of supporting the critical sociocultural dialogue that will continue to shape our present and future condition.
PHI’s institutional ecosystem is designed to creatively engage with contemporary forces - including the market economy - in order to support its global mission. It understands that longevity cannot be realized on ideals alone, and thus actively deploys its agility, creativity and diversified platform towards strategically engaging in its marketplaces, as well as new territories of potential in order to ensure a financially sustainable long term future.
Nevermore has the imperative of technology as an integral dimension of our sociocultural lives been so apparent. PHI has explicitly been committed to presenting the bleeding edge of its creative exploration through its projects, but this as a larger project of questioning, probing and prototyping how its presence and potential might play a role in shaping our society. These explorations underpin the cultural conversation fostered by PHI, but equally the ongoing evolution of its institutional footprint - rapidly (and continually) expanding into the virtual and technological ‘spaces’ of tomorrow.
Discover our Publications
Expand your artistic education with our exclusive publications, artist monographs, gallery guides and other printed goods, thoughtfully created to complement the exhibitions presented at PHI.