October 2026
As autumn continues, we are pleased to welcome the Australian-born-Māori poet, editor, cultural producer, and weaver Anne-Marie Te Whiu, here for a four week residency as part of our ongoing Cove Park/Varuna International Fellowship developed with Varuna, the National Writers' House of Australia. Anne-Marie's residency follows her appearance at this year's Wigtown Book Festival.
A new partnership with deAuteurs, the Belgian authors' rights management organisation, brings three artists developing new work in performance: theatre maker and screenwriter Céline Timmerman and Tibau Beirnaert with Laurens Aneca. Joining these residents are artists Rahel Levine and Evie Rose Thornton, taking part in the Visual Arts Scotland Residencies, and writer and performer Taylor Dyson, here for a Playwrights' Studio Scotland Residency.
Cove Park's Creative Residencies for Carers resumes this month with support from The Binks Trust, bringing interdisciplinary artist Bobbi Cameron; writer, artist, and researcher Alexandra Compton; multi-instrumentalist and songwriter Jo Mango; journalist and writer Claire Prentice; and designer and maker Cecilia Stamp to Cove Park for a one-week group residency.
September's Open Residencies this month include: visual artist and curator Ayda Pakzad Afshar; director and screenwriter Jack Bielby; photographer and videographer Jo Birch; writer and creative producer Catrin Kemp; writer and teacher Julie Kennedy; writer Hannah Low with dramaturg Nay Dhanak; writer, theatre maker and community artist Fiona Moon; performance artist and painter Eléonore Nicolas; artist, curator, and writer Arman Nouri; artist David Osbaldeston; screenwriter Louise V Say; composer, performing artist and producer Mara Simpson; painter Cynthia Young, and writer Dan Zell.
Read on for the announcement of our next open call for applications for Awarded Residencies in 2027 and 2028, a feature on this month's Body Remedy Residency and Forming Ecologies event, an update on Collective Home and the work of the Culture Collective Embedded Artists, the announcement of the International Visual Theatre Residency and Commission.
Image: Cove Park site (photography, Clubhouse Paradiso)
Awarded Residencies 2027 & 2028
Call for Applications Announced
Cove Park's Awarded Residencies are offered following a biennial call for applications and a selection process involving specialist advisors. These residencies are fully funded: the residents receive private accommodation and workspace and fees, in addition to travel, visa, materials, and access allowances when required.
We are pleased to announce the next Call for Applications for residencies in 2027 and 2028 is now live and the deadline for submissions is Friday 11 December 2026.
By programming Awarded Residencies over two years we can offer international artists longer residencies scheduled in relation to ongoing projects or the development of new work, and enable UK-based artists to structure their residencies, if preferable, over a two year period, making possible longer-term support for project development, research, and other professional or caring commitments.
Full details and information on how to apply is provided in the Application Guidelines.
Image: Cove Park's original Cubes (photography, Ruth Clark)
Subsidised Winter Residencies
Call for Applications
Our popular annual programme of Subsidised Winter Residencies returns and will run between December 2026 and March 2026. We welcome artists, cultural practitioners, writers, and researchers from every creative and academic discipline.
All residencies during this period are offered at a reduced cost, starting at £450 per week. This year, applications for this programme can be submitted at any time between 25 September 2026 and 26 February 2027.
Residencies are self-directed and designed to ensure those taking part have the time and facilities required to develop their own work. Cove Park’s small and dedicated professional team are happy to support the research and work of all our residents, and are available for informal conversations and meetings, in preparation for and during the residency period.
Visit our website for more information and to apply.
Image: The Jacobs Building in winter.
Creative Exchange 2027
Call for Applications
Creative Exchange 2027 is now open for applications.
Chamber Music Scotland and Cove Park have launched Creative Exchange 2027 – a four-day residency offering Scotland-based musicians and music creators dedicated space, time and peer support to reflect, create and collaborate across disciplines.
Taking place from Monday 15th to Thursday 18th March 2027 at Cove Park, the residency offers artists the time and space to think, engage, explore their practice without performance pressure.
The residency is for freelance musicians and music creators living and working in Scotland who are keen to immerse themselves in a collaborative, reflective environment. Chamber music must remain at the heart of the sound, instrumentation or ethos of their practice.
Learn more here and apply by 9 November.
Image: Creative Exchange at Hospitalfield, 2019 (photography, Louise Mather)
Join our Board
Recruiting new Trustees
We wish to appoint new Trustees committed to supporting Cove Park’s mission, building a sustainable and nurturing environment to provide creative and professional development residencies within the international cultural landscape.
We are looking for individuals who can bring knowledge, experience, and expertise to the Board in any of the following areas: buildings and land conservation, human resources and team development, creative industries and international networks, creative learning and engagement, fundraising and organisational development, environmental concerns and sustainability, finance and business development, and legal expertise.
Please see our Trustee Recruitment pack for more information and how to apply. The deadline for applications is 5pm on Wednesday 4 November 2026.
Image: The Jacobs Building (photography, Alan Dimmick)
Loch Long Crime Writing Residency
Writer Announced
We are delighted to announce that the recipient of the fourth Loch Long Crime Writing Residency is Doug Johnstone.
Doug is the author of twenty novels, many of which have been bestsellers. The Space Between Us was chosen for BBC Two’s Between the Covers, while six of his books have been shortlisted or longlisted for the Theakston Crime Novel of the Year or the McIlvanney Prize for Scottish Crime Novel of the Year. Doug has taught creative writing or been writer in residence at universities, schools, writing retreats, festivals, prisons and a funeral directors. We look forward to welcoming Doug here in January.
This residency is made possible with generous support from a Cove Park Patron.
Image: Doug Johnstone (photography, Duncan McGlynn)
International Visual Theatre Residency
Artists Announced
Taking place in early 2027, the International Visual Theatre Residency is a new initiative delivered in partnership with Manipulate Arts and international festival partners Arrivano dal Mare! (Ravenna, Italy), TIP-Fest (Turku, Finland) and Go Figure! (Oslo, Norway). The programme supports mid-stage development for ambitious visual theatre projects, creating space for artistic exchange, experimentation, and the development of high-quality new work.
Six projects from artists across Scotland, Finland, Italy and Norway will be supported. The participating artists are Mariasole Brusa & Eva Luna Betelli (Italy); Pia Kalenius & Antti-Juhani Manninen (Finland); Jim Manganello & Valtteri Alanen (Scotland/Finland); Anna Marie Simonsen & Marie Kallevik Straume (Norway); Alys Williams & Duncan MacLeod (Scotland), and Jenna Watt (Scotland).
Image: Jenna Watt, Hindsight R&D (photography, Mihaela Bodlovic)
New Commission Announced
Manipulate Festival 2028
We are delighted to share that Manipulate Arts have announced their inaugural Manipulate Festival commission, offered in association with Capital Theatres. Tube Man by Jim Manganello of Scotland-based dance company Shotput and Finnish artist Valtteri Alanen, will be supported beyond Cove Park through to full production, premiering at their 20th Anniversary Manipulate Festival in 2028.
With this commission, Manipulate Arts aims to support a Scotland production for the first time from initial creative development through to its premiere, with bespoke support anchored in artform-specific sector expertise.
Together, the International Visual Theatre Residency and the Manipulate Festival commission represent a significant investment in the future of visual theatre in Scotland, supporting artists to develop ambitious new work while strengthening international connections and creating pathways for long-term artistic growth.
Both the International Visual Theatre Residency and the commission are supported by Creative Scotland’s Expanded Festivals Fund.
Image: Valtteri Alanen (courtesy of Manipulate Arts)
Collective Home
Update
Asking what 'home' means for communities in Argyll and Bute has taken our three Embedded Artists in very different directions, introducing them to a wide range of community members and some fascinating community groups.
Carina NicHaouchine, a filmmaker who works with young people, spent several weeks over the summer running workshops in Helensburgh for young people interested in becoming creative campaigners on a pressing local issue. They were all concerned by the council’s proposed sale of Common Good land at the pier to developers planning to build a supermarket. Wanting their objections known and their alternative ideas heard, they created a short film to share on social media and send to decision makers within the council. For them, home and place are about shared spaces, places to meet and things to do with friends.
Kenny Glenaan, a theatre maker and Bafta winning film director, has been researching language, place and identity across the region. Working intensively in Garelochhead, where he grew up, he is warmly inviting the community to take part in a community play. The launch night and information session on 21 October drew over 75 community members. Weekly Tuesday night sessions are now open to all, regardless of past experience or level of commitment - register your interest here. Kenny has also been spending time with Aon Ghuth, a choir based in Oban for adults and children, many of whom have additional support needs. The choir sings in Gaelic and signs in Makaton, and together they are exploring identity, language and place.
Alicia Storie, a climate-conscious interior designer, has been working with a charity shop on the Isle of Mull that is struggling with the huge volume of discarded textiles and broken homewares donated to it. The shop faces storage problems and fees to remove the waste from the island. To help, Alicia is running a series of 'Design to Waste' workshops encouraging locals to use this material creatively and keep their homes cosy. The series will expand to other community groups on the island and surrounding areas in the coming months.
Collective Home: Community, Creativity & Action in Argyll is one of the 23 Scotland-wide projects awarded funding through Creative Scotland's Culture Collective in 2026-2027.
Image: Garelochhead Community Play information session with Kenny Glenaan
Good Enough: Open Studio
24 October 2026
Following a development residency in May, NOCTURN brings Good Enough back to Cove Park for a day of sharing work-in-progress.
Founded by John Darvell, NOCTURN creates participatory dance storyworlds with later-life dancers and communities, blending co-creation, everyday tech and cinematic storytelling. Good Enough is a portable storybox experience exploring masking, identity and the hidden self, built from the real stories of gay, bi and trans men over 50, and others who were raised and read as male.
For more details and to book your place, please visit our TicketTailor page.
Good Enough is supported by Immersive Arts and Creative Scotland's National Lottery Open Fund for Organisations, in collaboration with Switchboard LGBT+, OurStory Scotland, Sanctuary Queer Arts, Cove Park, Artlink Central, The Work Room, CityMoves Dance Agency SCIO, Pitlochry Festival Theatre, Birnam Arts and Dancin Oxford.
Image courtesy of John Darvell.
Saturday Studios: Building Home
5 December
Join Cove Park's Embedded Artist Kenny Glenaan for an immersive workshop connected to the concept of home. Kenny is a theatre maker and filmmaker based in Renfrewshire and developing work in Argyll.
During the workshop participants can create a character, form a family, build a home, go on a journey, meet strangers, build a community. Taking the idea of what ‘home’ means this is a two-hour interactive physical theatre workshop for everybody – of all abilities – in which everyone will play everything!
Two workshops for children and their accompanying adults will take place on 5 December. For further information and to reserve your free place, please visit our Ticket Tailor page.
Image courtesy of Emma Henderson.
Cove Park Friends & Patrons
Cove Park is proud to have a growing community of supporters who believe in the vital work we do to promote national and international cultural exchange and ensure our local rural community has access to innovative and creative learning opportunities as well as protecting the biodiversity of our site.
By becoming a Friend or Patron of Cove Park, you will help us to enrich arts, culture and creativity in Argyll and across Scotland, support the global exchange of ideas through our artist residences and save the natural heritage of Cove Park as a space for everyone to enjoy. Wherever you are, you will know your donation is making a vital contribution to the work of Cove Park and our support of artists. If Cove Park and our work means something to you, please consider becoming a Friend today. Learn more and join here.
If you are based in the United States, you can join our American Friends of Cove Park, our tax-effective annual giving programme.
Image: Event at Cove Park (photography, Tommy Ga-Ken Wan)
