Peter Fen Skating

16" x 20" print, edition of 50, unframed. 

Fen skating is a traditional form of ice skating which takes place on frozen fenland. During sustained periods of cold weather, flooded meadows in East Anglia freeze and create the ideal and safe terrain for skating. The perfect surface relies on just the right amount of flooding prior to a cold snap, which makes the opportunity to fen skate rare. Optimum conditions enable less than a handful of skating days every few years. As global temperatures rise and as our environments become more extreme and unpredictable the perfect conditions for Fen Skating become even more infrequent. During the winter of 2022, I began reading about fen skating which dates back to the medieval period when farmers would skate on sharpened old animal bones. After subscribing to weather alerts for obscure corners of East Anglia, I made many trips to fen skating ‘hotspots’ to find thin or melted ice, rain, flooded roads, no sign of the wonky telegraph pole (meeting point), no skaters and darkness. I knew when the conditions aligned, it would be worth it. I met NHS workers skating before shifts and I met ice hockey players practising for free instead of on a rink. I met farmers taking to the ice after feeding cattle, people wearing the skates of their grandfathers, locals who told me about how their parents had taught them on the same fen, speed skaters, first time skaters, skaters with broken ribs, people in their late 70’s who found skating easier than walking and Richard, who said to me: “Fen skating is like life, enjoy it while you can”.