Scotland is back in the spotlight at the Venice Art Biennale with a project that blends historical research, contemporary identities and artistic experimentation. On the occasion of the 61st International Art Exhibition - La Biennale di Venezia, Scotland + Venice presents Scotland + Venice: Bugarin + Castle, a Collateral Event curated by the Mount Stuart Trust and dedicated to the artistic duo formed by Davide Bugarin and Angel Cohn Castle. The exhibition is held in the spaces of Olivolo, in the Castello district, until November 22, 2026.
The project represents Scotland + Venice’s return to the Venetian event and marks one of the most ambitious presentations to date by the Glasgow-based artists. Through a combination of sculpture, moving images, architecture, performance and installation, Bugarin + Castle aim to construct a reflection on historical rituals of public humiliation and their possible contemporary reinterpretations. Their work traverses different geographies, eras and cultures, linking Scotland to the Philippines and bringing queer and trans histories into dialogue with social and cultural practices sedimented over time.
At the heart of the exhibition is a reinterpretation of European rituals known as rough music, charivari and scampanate, ancient forms of public sanction in which noise, pageants, cross-dressing and showmanship were used to punish individuals considered transgressors of social norms. Through a process of critical and artistic reinterpretation, these phenomena are transformed into a contemporary language aimed at interrogating themes such as power, shame, social control and identity construction. To develop the project, the artists wove together materials from very different contexts: 14th-century courtroom transcripts dialogue with 18th-century satirical engravings, karaoke ballads, medieval armor, and traditions of vehicle-related decorative art in the Philippines. The result is a layered universe in which historical documents and contemporary culture coexist within an open narrative intended to alternate between provocation, irony, vulnerability and tenderness.
The exhibition is developed through several works that occupy the exhibition spaces in an immersive manner. These include At Certayne Tymes, a sculpture that fuses anatomical, mechanical and vocal elements, constructing a device capable of simultaneously evoking body, machine and voice. Next to it finds space in Submit to Sound, a work of moving images that interweaves exercises in vocal feminization with songs made together with Manila’s band Kalye Teresa. The work reflects on the relationship between voice, identity and transformation, themes central to the artists’ research. Also connecting the different exhibition spaces is Nocturnal Amusements, a sculptural installation that runs through both gallery rooms and asks the viewer a direct question, “Are you discreet?” A provocation that recalls codes, languages and practices of queer communities, transforming the audience into an active part of the exhibition experience.
In Bugarin + Castle’s project, shame is neither eliminated nor simply denounced. On the contrary, it is analyzed as a complex emotional space within which opposition, desire, irony, intimacy and resistance can coexist. The artists do not propose moral solutions or unambiguous interpretations, but construct a territory in which power dynamics and identity definitions remain constantly open and in flux.
The duo’s selection to represent Scotland at the Biennale stems from a specific desire to offer an image of Scotland open to international dialogue and global connections. Indeed, through the work of Bugarin + Castle, Scotland + Venice proposes a vision of Scotland capable of confronting contemporary cultural and social transformations, while enhancing the diasporic and transnational relationships that characterize contemporary artistic production. Curating the project is the Mount Stuart Trust, an institution based on the Isle of Bute that has been developing a comprehensive program dedicated to contemporary visual arts since 2001. Under the leadership of director Morven Gregor, the Trust has collaborated over the years with such internationally prominent artists as Alberta Whittle, Abbas Akhavan, Linder, Martin Boyce, Thomas Abercromby and Ilana Halperin.
The choice of Bugarin + Castle was entrusted to a jury of leading figures in the international art scene. They included Sepake Angiama, director of Iniva, Norah Campbell of British Council Scotland, Simon Groom of the National Galleries of Scotland, Emma Nicolson of Creative Scotland, and Lucia Pietroiusti of the Hartwig Art Foundation in Amsterdam.
The duo’s artistic journey is characterized by a constant focus on the relationships between the body, identity, technology and memory. Their most recent projects include Sore Throat, an interactive film set between Edinburgh and Manila that addresses the theme of colonial monsters and sounds found in Filipino queer spaces. Presented in venues such as the Fruitmarket and Tate Modern, the work used custom software capable of recording and reinserting visitors’ voices within the filmic narrative, unknowingly transforming them into protagonists of the story. Parallel to their exhibition practice, Bugarin and Castle carry on an intense performative activity through the drag characters Hairy Teddy Bear and Pollyfilla, linked to Pollyanna, a Scottish queer arts organization founded by Castle and active for more than a decade.
Throughout their careers, the duo’s works have been presented in major international institutions, including Tate Modern, ICA, Fruitmarket, and City Art Centre in the United Kingdom, as well as exhibition spaces in the Philippines, the United States, Finland, and other European countries. New projects are already planned at the Tromsø Centre for Contemporary Art in Norway, the Peri Photographic Centre in Finland, Cypher in Greece, and Powerhouse Arts in the United States.
The individual careers of the two artists also testify to an established international path. Davide Bugarin participated in the 2024 Malta Biennale and the Italian Pavilion of the 2025 Architecture Biennale, as well as taking part in a residency connected to the 2023 Architecture Biennale. He has collaborated with professional journals such as The Architectural Review and The Architects’ Journal and has received awards from the Royal Institute of British Architects, the Worshipful Company of Architects, and Burberry. He recently completed a fellowship at the Warburg Institute, an experience that contributed to the initial research phase of the project presented in Venice.
Angel Cohn Castle, on the other hand, has developed a practice that crosses visual arts, performance and cultural production. His works have been commissioned by BBC Scotland, LUX Scotland, and Talbot Rice Gallery and have been exhibited at venues such as the Kunstmuseum Bonn in Germany and BALTIC in the United Kingdom. He currently teaches fine arts at Newcastle University and previously worked at the University of Edinburgh.
After the conclusion of the Venetian experience, Scotland + Venice: Bugarin + Castle will continue its exhibition tour in Scotland. In fact, the exhibition will be hosted at Mount Stuart in the summer of 2027, and then embark on a tour to other venues in the United Kingdom. The tour is supported by the Art Fund, while the Forma organization is curating the production of the film component of the project and is collaborating with the Mount Stuart Trust on the production of the Venice exhibition.
Bugarin + Castlestated, “For the restless and passionate, by a restless and passionate duo. The wayward woman, the cuckold, the prostitute, the sodomite and other social transgressors were publicly mocked in historic parades of humiliation. We are interested in understanding how both sound and transvestism were used not to express one’s essence but as tools of control. These rowdy events are the genesis of our exhibition that spans past and present, Scotland and the Philippines. We make our work in today’s context where the lives of trans people and sex workers are debated and influenced in courts and parliaments, often without even hearing what they have to say. The work does not erase shame, nor does it cling to it. Instead, we focus on the complexity, stickiness and collision between sound, voice and shame.”
Morven Gregor, Mount Stuart Trust curator, and Sophie Crichton Stuart, president of the Mount Stuart Trust, who founded Mount Stuart’s contemporary visual arts program in 2001, say, “We are excited to curate Bugarin + Castle’s work for Scotland + Venice in 2026. Scotland + Venice: Bugarin + Castle will be the artists’ most ambitious presentation to date, reflecting their global vision and practices through performance, film, architecture, sculpture and design. Their ability to animate historical research to foreground contemporary issues exemplifies the approach of Mount Stuart’s contemporary visual arts program. As the program celebrates its 25th anniversary in 2026 by presenting Bugarin + Castle in Venice, we look forward to bringing Scotland + Venice: Bugarin + Castle to Bute in 2027.”
Alastair Evans, chair of the Scotland + Venice Partnership, says, “Scotland + Venice was created to offer artists the opportunity to develop ambitious new work in one of the world’s most dynamic cultural contexts and to promote Scotland as an international center of excellence for the visual arts.” Emma Nicolson, head of visual arts at Creative Scotland, added, “Bugarin + Castle are creating works that are visually striking, conceptually rich and politically resonant. It promises to be a powerful and provocative encounter and we are proud to support its journey leading to the exhibition in Venice and then to audiences at home in 2027.”
Norah Campbell, head of arts at British Council Scotland, points out, “Venice is one of the world’s most significant stages for contemporary art, and Scotland + Venice offers Scottish artists a valuable opportunity to share their work with an international audience. The British Council is delighted to support this project together with the presentation of the British Pavilion, which together showcase the diversity of creative talent in the UK Unit.”
Lucia Pietroiusti, head of research and emergence at the Hartwig Art Foundation in Amsterdam and member of the jury, comments, “A presentation in Venice by a country is a meeting point between local and international artists. It brings into dialogue practices rooted in their environment with the broader existential, philosophical, cultural and social issues of our time. This work was selected because of the artist’s vision, energetic approach, collaborative nature and the way it connects the realities of Scotland with that of the rest of the world.”
Simon Groom, director of national and international partnerships at the National Galleries of Scotland, says, “Bugarin + Castle’s artistic collaboration exemplifies the spirit of partnership at the heart of this ambitious project, which has forged new creative networks and innovative alliances and will enable the work to be enjoyed by audiences in Venice, as well as touring both in Scotland and internationally.”
Chris Rawcliffe, artistic director of Forma, says, “Scotland + Venice: Bugarin + Castle reflects Forma’s longstanding support for projects that are career-determining and seek to expand the boundaries of artists’ practice. As an organization committed to developing strong and lasting relationships with our partners, we are honored to return to the Biennale once again in this expanded role, following our previous support for Alberta Whittle’s Scotland + Venice presentation in 2022.”
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| Scotland brings Bugarin + Castle's queer and trans vision to Venice Biennale |
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