The Serpentine Swimmers Club is a group of about 40 hearty
people of all ages and all walks of life who meet each weekend at an urban
lake in London's Hyde Park to swim and race in near-freezing waters.
British photographer Andrew Buurman swam with the group (once), and then
returned often to photograph these people doing what they feel driven
to do. The result, I think, is a remarkable testimony to the accomplishments
of people who willfully defy the deathly cold by celebrating their own
vigorous bodies, the joy of burning muscles, and the satisfaction of not
surrendering to aging bodies nor to the creature comforts of modern day
life.
Their "club" dates back to the late 1800s, and with the exception
of a few modern-day clues (such as the young mother posing with her infant
in a modern jogger's stroller), the photographs capture a timeless quality
of exuberance and pride and daring. One can easily imagine that the pioneering
members of the Serpentine Swimmers Club looked very much like their tribal
progeny of the 21st century.
— Jim Casper
FeatureSerpentine Swimmers ClubBritish photographer Andrew Buurman documents the hearty souls who swim weekly in icy London waters.View Images
Feature
Serpentine Swimmers Club
British photographer Andrew Buurman documents the hearty souls who swim weekly in icy London waters.
Serpentine Swimmers Club
British photographer Andrew Buurman documents the hearty souls who swim weekly in icy London waters.
Trending this Week
Wilted
Inspired by the subjectivity of storytelling, photographer Dylan Hausthor creates images that question and bring to light the frenetic nature of visual memory.
Announcing the Winners & Finalists – 2018 Street Photography Awards!
Four Sisters, 40 Years: Nicholas Nixon Video Interview
Once a year, for 40 years, the Brown sisters have had their portrait taken—listen to the photographer speak about this simple, yet amazing series of photographs.
Lord of the Mangrove
Amidst the roots of the tallest mangrove trees in the world, young concheros (or shell pickers) hunt for the precious black shells that will support their families. Felipe Jacome has photographed this practice for a decade.
Nothing Added, Nothing Removed
Splicing and rearranging the subjects depicted in vintage flea market finds, photographer Kensuke Koike reformats discarded memories into intriguing and precise abstract works.
The Bombs They Carried
Portraits of resilience and strength—these young women were captured by Boko Haram and forced to carry suicide bombs. But instead of succumbing to their captors’ torments and committing a violent act, they resisted.
Related
Snowy Journey
A Japanese poetic meditation on life, journeys, and landscapes both internal and external.
The Unknown Soldier
These photos offer a powerfully honest look into the harsh toll that war takes on those who wage it. Each image conveys a moving depiction of courage, strength—and vulnerability—in a beautifully artistic manner.
Sylvia Plachy
Special Guest Lecture
One of the most important photojournalists and street
photographers of our time talks about her working methods, influences,
color photography and more.
Doves and the City
Doves and their human caretakers are at the center of a diverse and lively subculture in Moscow. Katerina Slesar documents large scale marketplaces, expos, and a wide range of architectural styles for the dovecote dwellings.
Hopper Meditations
Iconic lighting, mid-twentieth century settings, and themes of solitude, alienation and longing infuse these award-winning photographic responses to the work of the American painter, Edward Hopper.
Mass Surveillance (in the Age of Live Streams)
From a kindergarten in Japan to London’s Abbey Road, these photos make up a photographic survey of the thousands of publicly accessible webcams live-streaming around the world.