Imperial, 2022

In residence with Lancashire Saw Company, Jacqueline presented IMPERIAL, a film inspired by a combination of fast beats, slow canals and the repetition of industry. The manufacturer is housed in Imperial Mill, the imposing former textile mill built in 1901 on Blackburn’s Stretch of the Leeds & Liverpool Canal. Jacqueline created work that could be presented in-situ, inviting an audience to experience the canal and rediscover it as a place for cultural activity.

The original soundtrack makes a connection to the underground dance scene of the late 1980’s that was particularly prevalent and influential in Blackburn and East Lancashire.

On Friday 10th June 2022, an audience experienced the fast and slow of the project with a music barge procession along the towpath and a film screening at Imperial Mill. House music DJ Bobby Singh played from the rear of the moving boat, guiding audiences along the waterways to the screening of Imperial, housed in the iconic mill where it was filmed.

Film production and post-production: Andy McGregor

Original Soundtrack: Hamish Brown

This project is part of the Pennine Lancashire Linear Park pilot project delivered by The Super Slow Way. The Pennine Lancashire Linear Park pilot project is funded by the UK Government via the UK Community Renewal Fund.

Artist

Jacqueline Donachie is an award-winning Scottish artist. Based in Glasgow, she has forged an international reputation for a socially-engaged art practice that is rooted in an exploration of individual, family and collective identity and the structures, platforms and spaces (both actual and conceptual) through which it is constructed and supported. Her work encompasses sculpture, installations, photographs, films, drawings and performance and is research-based, collaborative and participatory. She was recipient of the inaugural Freelands Award and most recently presented a major new work, Beautiful Sunday, at Folkestone Triennial 2021.

Manufacturer

Lancashire Saw Company is housed in Imperial Mill, the imposing former textile mill built in 1901 located on Blackburn’s stretch of the Leeds & Liverpool Canal. It is one of the oldest-established and largest bandsaw makers in Europe, making over 2000 each week for sawmills, timber importers and the joinery trade. Established in 1943, the company is made up of a team of experts in the art of saw manufacturing & servicing and has a satellite unit in Edinburgh.