New director of Super Slow Way appointed

Super Slow Way, a major arts commissioning programme established to create a lasting legacy of arts and culture in Pennine Lancashire, has appointed Laurie Peake as its director.

Laurie will lead the commissioning of artists for the three-year project, running until 2017, which has received a £2million grant from Arts Council England’s Creative People & Places programme.  Super Slow Way will be developed by leading arts producers, working with local communities along the Leeds & Liverpool Canal from Blackburn to Pendle.

Inspired by the canal and taking its cue from the Slow Movement, Super Slow Way asks how can we use our time more creatively; bringing art and artists to this space where time slows down, to look afresh at how people live their fast-paced lives and how they relate to their environment, neighbourhoods and to each other.

Laurie Peake, Director for Super Slow Way, said: “I’m very proud to be from Pennine Lancashire and thrilled to be given the opportunity to get involved in the already vibrant cultural life of the region. I’m excited by the potential of Super Slow Way and looking forward to working with artists from near and far as well as residents across the area, using its great industrial heritage, dramatic landscapes and cultural diversity as inspiration and material. I hope Super Slow Way can spark a creative revolution on the banks of the Leeds & Liverpool Canal; one that inspires new types of productivity and offers opportunities to spend our time more imaginatively, supporting existing cultural activity and encouraging new forms. My aim is to harness the arts to look back at what shaped this area, to ask new questions about where we are now and imagine and propose new directions for where we are heading.”

Tony Hales, chair of the Super Slow Way project board, added: “Super Slow Way is a hugely ambitious project that aims to celebrate, unite and excite the communities along the Leeds & Liverpool Canal. Laurie has a superb track record of running major cultural programmes, so we are delighted to have her on board.  We’re now looking forward to turning our ambitions into reality, and create a truly unique cultural project together with the local people over the coming years.”