TURNER Prize winner Jasleen Kaur has unveiled a new public artwork along the north bank of the River Clyde as part of this summer’s Glasgow 2026 Festival.
The work, titled Superstructure, is one of the festival’s signature commissions in a 10-week celebration of Glasgow’s “world-renowned culture, creativity and people” running from May 23 to August 9 alongside the Commonwealth Games.
Funded by Commonwealth Sport, the commission comprises eight weathervane-like sculptures installed at key sites along the river connected to its history of trade, industry and empire.
The pieces are designed to be encountered casually and repeatedly, shifting with light, weather and viewpoint. Each sculpture carries a word or phrase that turns in the wind, pointing across the city towards both its past and future.
As they rotate, the texts change orientation and resonance, “acting as roving signals to the material residue of the Commonwealth; systems of judiciary, taxation and defence, infrastructure still present on the river today”.
Kaur, who was born in Glasgow and has longstanding family ties to Govan and the Clyde, said her own background and practice – which often interrogate social justice, migration and power – inform the work’s examination of what the Commonwealth has meant, and continues to mean, in a city built on global trade routes.
“The geographer Doreen Massey says that ‘maps are not the only way to depict a place’,” Kaur said.
“I see Superstructure as a kind of alternative mapping to read the city differently. They signal to the connections between infrastructure, governance and empire. At times, the roving texts will align with buildings and spaces I intended, like the Sheriff Court or an arms factory and at other times it’s up to chance. I hope they invite a curiosity and many interpretations.”
Now based in London, Kaur has seen her career accelerate since winning the Turner Prize in 2024, with recent and upcoming presentations including If the word we, the 59th Carnegie International in Pittsburgh; British Art Show 10: A Chorus Of Strangers; and the inaugural Art Explora Art Commission at V&A East, launching in autumn 2026.
She developed Superstructure with research support from Glasgow-based architect Jude Barber of Collective Architecture and writer Louise Welsh, who work together as The Empire Café and host the podcast Who Owns The Clyde, exploring history, land, ownership, ecology and the continuing effects of empire.
Other Glasgow collaborators include Narro Associates, Scott Associates Sculpture and Design, and Glasgow International director Helen Nisbet in a curatorial role.
Phil Batty OBE, CEO of Glasgow 2026, said: “This is exactly what Glasgow 2026 Festival is about - bringing world-class artists into the fabric of the city and creating work that people encounter as part of their everyday lives.
“Jasleen’s ‘Superstructure’ sits right on the River Clyde, asking us to look again at a place we think we know - and to reflect on the histories and connections that have shaped Glasgow.
“Investing in public art available for all, and rooted in this city, is an important opportunity, and it’s a perfect example of how the Glasgow 2026 Festival complements the global stage of the Games with something thoughtful and distinctly Glasgow.”
Bailie Annette Christie, chair of Glasgow Life and city convener for culture, sport and international relations, hailed the work as “a spectacular public artwork that manages the seemingly impossible task of tying Glasgow, the River Clyde, and the Commonwealth together in a way that reflects their shared history and the present”.
“As part of the Glasgow 2026 Festival, this commission also celebrates the creativity of the city that has a global international reputation for nurturing and developing artists,” she added.
“The new City Development Plan 2 includes proposals for a Public Art Strategy that would embed cultural policy into the city’s architecture, planning, and development frameworks.
“I am thrilled that Jasleen has chosen to gift this artwork to the city as a legacy from the Glasgow 2026 Festival, and I know that her work will inspire even more people in Glasgow this summer and delight residents and visitors alike.”
Superstructure will remain on the banks of the Clyde until August 10 before being relocated to new permanent homes elsewhere in the city.
