Connectors: International Speakers Series – Kitty Scott
Fri Mar 27 2026
6:00 PM – 8:00 PM
The event is free, but registration is required due to limited capacity.
Left: Portrait of Kitty Scott. / Right: Miguel Fernández de Castro, Becoming Sahuaro, 2019–2025. Photos, interventions. Dimensions variable.
Kitty Scott is the inaugural speaker of the Connectors: International Speakers Series. On March 27, 2026, we invite you to join Scott for an illuminating lecture on the making of Does the flower hear the bee? (November 8, 2025–March 31, 2026) her acclaimed exhibition at Shanghai’s Power Station of Art as part of the 15th Shanghai Biennale. We have long known that when bees gather, they share knowledge with one another. We are only just recognizing that this network of communication extends beyond their kind. It turns out that flowers are also gathering information; we now appreciate that they “hear” the vibrations of honeybee wings, which causes them to secrete a sweeter nectar. Taking inspiration from this current understanding of the natural world, the 15th Shanghai Biennale seeks to develop new forms of sensorial communication between artwork, visitor, and environment. The exhibition aims to work at the intersection of differing models of intelligence, human and non-human, and to learn from both nature and culture. Scott’s presentation will provide an inside look at the ideas, collaborations, and curatorial strategies that shaped The Biennale—an ambitious exploration of the mutual dependencies between art, the environment, and human perception.
Schedule
- 5:30 PM: Doors Open
- 6 PM: Talk Begins
Connectors: International Speakers Series continues the gallery’s engagement with visionary thinkers from around the world. Its previous iteration, International Lecture Series, ran from 2006 to 2018 and included speakers such as Mark Bradford, Mona Hatoum, Julie Mehretu, Valerie Cassel Oliver, Jolene Rickard, Ralph Rugoff, and Michael Snow, among many others. Connectors will strive to spotlight critical perspectives of artists, curators and scholars shaping contemporary art. This series of talks aligns with The Power Plant’s mission, which is dedicated to creating spaces for conversation amongst diverse communities by engaging with contemporary art and ideas.
About the Speaker
Kitty Scott is a leading Canadian curator, writer, and senior arts administrator whose work spans major art institutions and international exhibitions. She is known for shaping contemporary art discourse through ambitious programming and sustained collaborations with artists. Currently, Scott is Strategic Director of Fogo Island Arts and this past year, as Chief Curator of the 15th Shanghai Biennale, she recently presented, Does the flower hear the bee? at the Power Station of Art, Shanghai. Scott has held key curatorial posts including Curator of Contemporary Art and later Deputy Director and Chief Curator at the National Gallery of Canada in Ottawa. She also served as the Carol and Morton Rapp Curator of Modern and Contemporary Art at the Art Gallery of Ontario in Toronto. Previously, she was Chief Curator at London’s Serpentine Gallery and Director of Visual Arts at The Banff Centre, where she oversaw residencies, exhibitions, and the Banff International Curatorial Institute. Scott was a core agent for dOCUMENTA (13) in 2012. With Sally Tallant she co-curated the 2018 Liverpool Biennial, Beautiful world, where are you? She curated Geoffrey Farmer’s exhibition for the Canada Pavilion at the 57th Venice Biennale (2017). Across these roles she has championed a wide range of contemporary artists while publishing extensively in catalogues, books, and journals.
Beverages will be available for purchase before and after the talk.