New MK Skate book

MK Skate, a history of skateboarding in Milton Keynes is the culmination of a unique two- year heritage programme led by creatives and the community of local skateboarders.

The book explores the seminal role Milton Keynes has played in the development of UK skateboarding culture. It is an important story which until now has remained unrecorded and largely unknown outside of the skate community.

For more information and how to buy the book.

On -Street Exhibition

Although the street exhibition is no longer on show there is a digital guide to follow. You can download the app, or visit the MK Skate Trail pages to visit a number of skate spots and learn about the some of skaters and their tricks.

Using the network of underpasses in Central Milton Keynes an on-street trail highlighted areas of the city which are significant skate spots – places where near impossible tricks have been completed or where skate pioneers/celebrities have left their mark. This included The Pritchard Gap named after iconic skateboarder Matt Pritchard (‘Dirty Sanchez’/’Dirty Vegan’); The Battle of the Beige where skateboarders went head-to-head with corporate landowners; and the building of The Buszy, which developed over a unique three year consultation process with skateboarders, businesses, residents, the police and city architects.

The on-street exhibition ran from 26 September 2019 to 31 st March 2020 in a series of underpasses along Midsummer Boulevard at: Marlborough Gate, Saxon Gate, Witan Gate, and Elder Gate. An estimated 250,000 people engaged with the exhibition.

The MK Trails app and web site has been produced with partners Living Archive MK.

Exhibition

Starting with the radical punks in the early 1980s, through to the impact of US skate films and tours in the 1990s, and on to 2020 Olympic dreams, the MK Skate exhibition captured the personal histories of the generations of skaters, both hobbyists and sponsored, who have grown up in the city. Their stories were shared through an exhibition of their personal collections featuring pro skateboards, stickers, 1970s polaroids, 1990s baggy jeans, VHS and cine film, zines, and a rare pair of trainers named after The Buszy.

The centre:mk kindly loaned a shop unit in the shopping centre from 27 September – 22 December 2019 and provided sponsorship for the exhibition.

Activities & talks

A programme of workshops and talks for adults and children accompanied the exhibition. This included a talk by Iain Borden and skateboard legend Matt Pritchard in conversation with film maker Lindsay Knight.

Workshops included photography led by Leo Sharp; video sessions led by Ryan Gray; and artist and skater Tom Guilmard leading deck painting sessions.

The Commission

Artist James Jessop was commissioned to create a new work for the exhibition, this is now exhibited in Milton Keynes Central Library where it is seen by an average 22,000 people each month.

The painting titled MK Skate Styles is a transcription of Rubens Peace and War which hangs in the National Portrait Gallery, London.

MK Skate Styles was painted 390 years after the original and at the same size (200 x 300cm). The painting focuses on the styles of the artist’s favourite skaters that he skated with between 1989-91. Photographs from the magazines of the era provided reference material for the painting.

James Jessop grew up in Milton Keynes and skated it’s streets, he is now a full-time artist showing his work internationally.

Archives & collections

From photographs, magazines to skateboard decks and clothing the skateboarding community have a vast collection of items and information. This has been essential in helping capture and share the unique skateboarding story in Milton Keynes that featured in the exhibitions and the Mk Skate book.

As part of the project a series of workshops led by Buckinghamshire Archives provided an overview and understanding of the significance of their collections and information on how to keep them for future generations.

Project partner Living Archive led workshops on learning to interview and filming to create 20 oral histories that capture the stories and experiences of people involved in the skate scene and the development of the Buszy Skate Plaza, these are available through www.livingarchive.org.