In 2003, the Scottish Arts Council and the British Council, supported by the Scottish Executive, formed a successful partnership which mounted a presentation of new work from Scotland entitled Zenomap. Unusually, Zenomap included some 28 artists working in a variety of media.
The curators of the 2003 presentation, Kay Pallister and Francis McKee, felt that the range and depth of art being produced in Scotland would be difficult to represent within the confines of a solo presentation, and so opted to have a much more comprehensive exhibition.
The central exhibition was held at the impressive Palazzo Giustinian-Lolin on the Grand Canal and featured specially-commissioned work from three Scottish-based artists with strong international reputations: Claire Barclay, Jim Lambie and Simon Starling.
A further 24 artists exhibited work at a nearby venue, including screenings and web-based work. Launched by a terrific party, the Scottish presence in Venice rapidly became one of the most talked-about exhibitions in the city.
The five-month exhibition attracted many thousands of visitors and received much critical acclaim.
A review by Frieze Magazines' Dan Fox on Scotland + Venice 2003 can be found here.