Published Friday 11 July 2025 at 9:56
For weeks, onlookers have watched as a riot of botanical colour has emerged in the form of a striking new mural in Blackburn town centre.
One of the standout artworks from the hugely successful National Festival of Making, Floral Timekeepers has completely transformed a small car park close to Prism Contemporary, bringing sunshine on even the greyest of days.
The masterpiece is by Morag Myerscough, a globally renowned artist known for her immersive structural installations filled with bold patterns, vibrant colours and a powerful injection of positive energy.
Morag has created pieces for the likes of Coachella and the Paris Olympics, and in a huge coup was brought to Blackburn as part of Art in Manufacturing – the festival’s hugely successful headline commissioning programme.
This unique initiative pairs artists with some of the UK’s leading manufacturers – many proudly based here in Blackburn with Darwen.
And it was a perfect match: Morag being partnered with Crown Paints, a company with a long and proud history of making colours for interiors and exteriors.
Founded nearly 250 years ago as Dob Meadows Printing Shop in Darwen – where its head office remains today – Crown’s team helped select the colours for the mural, and even contributed their favourite flowers, which have been incorporated into the design.
Indeed, the story behind the artwork is just as fascinating as the mural itself.
Morag was inspired by a visit to Corporation Park, and particularly the Victorian conservatory there.
She wanted the mural to align with regeneration plans for the town and planned investment for the park – encouraging the community to ‘dream’ about restoring its botanical heritage.
At the heart of her vision for Floral Timekeepers is a palette of 49 Crown Paints colours, and the spinning colour clock – representing the clock on the park’s glasshouse.
During a tour, Morag explained that it’s believed the clock was added so that industrial workers wouldn’t lose track of time while enjoying the flowers – a brief but welcome escape from the town’s many mills.
Over the festival weekend – which attracted tens of thousands of visitors – the area around the mural, a corner of Barton Street car park, was turned into an urban parklet, filled with large planters and seasonal blooms.
The space buzzed with festivalgoers, bees and butterflies alike.
The project has been supported by the Government’s Highstreet Accelerators programme and as with the mural itself, the planters will remain in the town – now relocated to King William Street, providing a lasting splash of colour.
Lauren Zawadzki, Co-Director of the National Festival of Making, said:
We’re always thinking about how the National Festival of Making can have a meaningful impact outside of our Festival weekend and Morag Myerscough’s permanent mural is such a good example of that.
It has been amazing to work with Morag over recent months and bring her vision to life with the support of the incredible Colour Studio at Crown Paints.
Along with the arrival of our festival audiences, a real highlight of our weekend was seeing the bees and butterflies arrive at the planters, almost as soon as the array of seasonal planting went in.
A remarkable outcome for Art in Manufacturing with all thanks to artist, factory and the creative practitioners who supported this new work.
To date, Art in Manufacturing has commissioned more than 30 artists to create exceptional new works, all showcased at the ever-popular festival, now a firm favourite in the national cultural calendar.
This year’s line-up also included:
- Matter at hand, the design studio of Lewis Jones (co-founder of the Turner Prize-winning Assemble Collective) in collaboration with Darwen Terracotta
- Liaqat Rasul, partnered with Herbert Parkinson (a John Lewis partner)
Both artists wowed visitors with their stunning installations inside Blackburn Cathedral.
Meanwhile, the Blakey Moor building – opposite King George’s Hall – also opened to the public for the very first time since its impressive transformation as part of wider investment in the area.
It hosted Radical Pairings – a celebration of previous Art in Manufacturing residencies, documented in a new essay by art critic and writer Elizabeth Fullerton.
For those who missed the festival weekend, or want to explore the artworks again, they remain open until 4pm on Saturday (July 12th):
Poured Earth
By Matter at hand + Darwen Terracotta
12–4pm
North Transept, Blackburn Cathedral
Umeed (Oh-meed) امید – Gobaith – Hope
By Liaqat Rasul + Herbert Parkinson
12–4pm
The Crypt, Blackburn Cathedral
Radical Pairings
12–4pm
Blakey Moor Terrace
Also:
Light Organ (extended opening)
9–12 July – 12–4pm
The Crypt, Blackburn Cathedral
You can find out more about Art in Manufacturing and this year’s featured artists by clicking this link.
Councillor Phil Riley, Leader of Blackburn with Darwen Council and proud festival supporter, said:
This new mural by Morag Myerscough is a truly stunning addition to Blackburn town centre – a bold and beautiful celebration of our borough’s proud heritage and creativity.
It’s a fantastic example of what the National Festival of Making and the Art in Manufacturing programme are all about – bringing world-class artists to work with our local manufacturers to create something genuinely special, rooted in our place and our community.
The partnership with Crown Paints, a company started here in Darwen, makes this artwork even more meaningful – and I love that their team helped shape the colours and the flowers used.
Projects like this do more than just brighten our streets – they inspire pride, spark imagination, and play a key role in the regeneration of our town centres.
We’re incredibly proud to support the festival and grateful to everyone involved for continuing to put Blackburn with Darwen on the cultural map in such a powerful way.
The Council has recently secured £750,000 of new Government funding for improvements to Corporation Park and is working closely with Historic England about potential future uses for the Conservatory, with residents being asked their views in a recent new survey.
Meanwhile, in another exciting festival collaboration, the Festival of Making, Art Angel and Blackburn Museum and Art Gallery also brought Come As You Really Are, a joyful celebration of hobbies and hobbyists by Hetain Patel, last weekend.
And thousands of visitors packed turned out to see it – attracting record crowds to the museum over the festival weekend.
Come As You Really Are runs until 23 August. Entry to the museum – now celebrating its 150th year – is always free. For opening times, please visit: www.blackburnmuseum.org.uk
Now in its ninth year, the National Festival of Making once again wowed visitors, with the works by world-renowned artists and a bumper programme of over 100 events – including workshops, talks, live performances, markets, music and more.
The festival is proudly supported by Arts Council England, Blackburn with Darwen Council, the Brian Mercer Trust, Blackburn BID, the Granada Foundation and the UK Shared Prosperity Fund.
Photos and videos from the jam-packed weekend have been shared on the National Festival of Making’s Facebook and Instagram pages, with still more to come.
For more on the festival, check out: www.festivalofmaking.co.uk
To read about the Art in Manufacturing programme and more about the works on show until Saturday, click here.
And for a full guide to what’s on in Blackburn town centre, please visit: www.discoverblackburn.co.uk