* LUX will be closed on Sunday 18 February due to staff sickness. We apologise for any inconvenience this may cause to those planning to visit our gallery, library and shop.
Easy Read Version
LUX is pleased to present the first London solo exhibition by Glasgow-based artist Andrew Black featuring his new Margaret Tait Award 2021 film, presented in collaboration with LUX Scotland.
‘On Clogger Lane’ is a new experimental documentary. Named for an old road now submerged beneath a reservoir, the film meanders through the Washburn Valley in Yorkshire. It explores the infrastructures of capital on land overshadowed by a monstrous surveillance station, flooded and dammed, haunted by accusations of witchcraft, and populated by the traces of many generations of past inhabitants – from prehistoric carvings to the Victorian graves of child labourers.
The film incorporates newly-recorded conversations with Sylvia Boyes, Anne Lee and Lindis Percy, local women who have been involved in opposing the activities of RAF Menwith Hill, an American-run signals intelligence base near Harrogate – and British and US imperialism in different capacities – over decades. Further contributors are local people whose connections to the valley tell complex and interlinked stories of industrial exploitation, social history and folklore – farmers, antiquarians, dowsers, grandmothers, Quakers and Communists. These oral histories are accompanied by an experimental score by Leeds improvisational band Vibracathedral Orchestra, as well as synthesised Medieval song and archival sound and film from the Yorkshire Film Archive. ‘On Clogger Lane’ explores the meeting points of passivity and protest, public and private, past and present, all coincident in the same patch of ancient land.
Presented by LUX and LUX Scotland.
The Margaret Tait Commission is a LUX Scotland project delivered in partnership with Glasgow Film, with support from Creative Scotland. Previously known as the Margaret Tait Award, the name was changed in 2023 to more accurately reflect the opportunity.
Featured work:
1. ‘On Clogger Lane’, Andrew Black, 2022, video, 60 minutes
2. ‘Disarming Grandmothers’ Episode 2, 23 and 29, Web Series. Directed and produced by Claire Pope Associate Producer Steven keevil. www.disarminggrandmothers.com
3. ‘Womenwith Hill Women’s Peace Camp (Menwith Hill II)’, Flying Focus Video Collective (FFVC). Recorded and produced by Portland Peace Activist and folk singer Yvonne Simmons.
‘Disarming Grandmothers’ and ‘Womenwith Hill Women’s Peace Camp (Menwith Hill II)’ are video works that informed and shaped the development of ‘On Clogger Lane’ by Andrew Black.
‘On Clogger Lane’ Screening Schedule:
The duration of the film is 60 minutes. The film will be shown every hour from 12 pm to 4 pm.
Download the Exhibition Handout
Download the Reading list curated by Andrew Black
Auditory/Visual Access: We have hearing loops, a large print guide and magnifying glasses available in the space. The film in the exhibition has open captions. If you wish to experience the film with audio descriptions, please request a listening device at the front desk.
Sensory Access: Please note that the exhibition space is very dark, and the sound/noise volume is adjusted to a higher level. Let us know in advance if you require the room to be brighter or a lower volume environment. The films in the screening programme include loud sounds.
You can find general access information here
If you have any access needs to attend our events please contact us at +44(0)20 3141 2960 or [email protected]
