On the eve of the Venice Biennale, Italian kids have found an unconventional use for the mischievous Stick Man, part of Scotland´s Selective Memory exhibition.

Local children in Venice are using the spectacular nine-metre work of art as goalposts for a friendly game of soccer.

The outdoor sculpture has been created by Scottish-based artists Joanne Tatham and Tom O´Sullivan and is part of the Selective Memory exhibition, curated by Jason E Bowman and Rachel Bradley, which also includes work by other Scottish-based artists, Alex Pollard and Cathy Wilkes.

The Venice Biennale is the most important festival of contemporary art in the world, featuring work from more than 60 countries and over 400,000 people are expected to visit the exhibition, which runs from June to November 2005.

For more information on the Scottish exhibition, visit www.scotlandandvenicebiennale.com.

Notes to Editors

1. The Scottish Arts Council champions and sustains the arts for Scotland, investing over ?60 million from the Scottish Executive and National Lottery funding to support and develop artistic excellence and creativity throughout Scotland. Further information is available from our website, www.scottisharts.org.uk.
2. The National Galleries of Scotland comprise the National Gallery of Scotland, the Royal Scottish Academy building, the Scottish National Portrait Gallery, the Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art and the Dean Gallery in Edinburgh.
3. The British Council is the United Kingdom´s international organisation for educational opportunities and cultural relations. It operates independently from the UK Government. In Scotland the British Council offers its partners a gateway to its global networks, and it provides its audiences worldwide with a window on Scotland. For more information please see www.britishcouncil.org/scotland