Established in 1994, Cryptic is Scotland’s internationally renowned home of audiovisual art and experimentation. Founded by Cathie Boyd, and based in Glasgow but with a global reach, Cryptic presents and promotes the most dynamic talents of today and tomorrow as they explore new dimensions in live music, visual and sonic arts and performance, and the weird and wild areas where these disciplines intersect and cross over.
Image credit: Alex Woodward
Whether traditional live gigs, audiovisual nights, automated performances or groundbreaking digital experiences, Cryptic events always dazzle the senses, stimulate thought and provoke conversation. Cryptic artists and projects transform existing spaces from theatres to defunct factories, as well as immersing audiences in virtual environments; they make use of traditional musical instrumentation and projection techniques as much as state-of-the-art new technologies that point to the sonic art of the future.
Image credit: Renzo Mazzolini
These dramatically diverse talents and projects are united by the three strands that are key to Cryptic’s mission. Cryptic Artists seeks out and nurtures new and pioneering talents. Cryptic Nights supports and mentors Scottish-based artists, helping them reach the next stage in their creative development. And, every two years, the Sonica Glasgow festival of audiovisual art and performance presents an 11-day programme of international events featuring new and established artists.
Image credit: Eamonn McGoldrick
To date, Cryptic has programmed 2,000 + artists, whose work has been seen by over 1.2 million people in 32 countries. 2024 will see Cryptic celebrating three decades of ‘ravishing the senses’. In its most ambitious year of events yet, it will bring even more of the best of audiovisual art to audiences across the world.
Image credit: Zeno Watson
