“It’s seeing something the wrong way, a joke that nobody else would notice. The dominating theme of my work is taking something seen as commonplace and putting it in conflicting surroundings. In so doing we see that it wasn’t so common after all. I believe that’s where the humour and beauty of art lies.”

Gavin is no stranger to Boxpark, the works on his stall at the regular Made in Croydon makers’ markets at the venue regularly sell out by lunchtime. And, it turns out, preparing work for an exhibition is not so different to preparing work to sell at markets or to order for private commissions.

“It’s actually very similar. Every artist wants to be perpetually treading new steps but we forget that for each person familiar with our work, there will be another who will be seeing it for the first time, so they should get to see the story from the start.”

And pulling together the works for a keynote new show in his hometown doesn’t faze him. “Manic queues and noisy bars are nerve-wracking for me; putting together an art show is where I thrive. We build these worlds because we lose control of our surroundings and need to find a place that we can control so that we might reconnect with ourselves.”

Tell us about Little Treasures and what it does?
Little Treasures was born in Feb 2014 and is run from a small room in my home in Croydon, Surrey. I make general and personalised cards, keepsakes and gifts for various occasions. Our most popular keepsake of 2019 was the metal angel wing tree decoration which incorporates a hanging heart with the name of a family member, friend or pet. Some of our other popular items include our family tree frame, scrabble tile cards with ages or names and our heart shaped glass baubles for weddings, new babies and remembering lost loved ones. I like to try and create something a little different to what you’d find in the shops and always welcome bespoke orders.

Where did you get the idea for it?
I started with crafting as a hobby and as a way of de-stressing during some particularly challenging times. It was an opportunity at first to lose myself in my creativity and escape the stress of life. It was my amazing friend Sam who encouraged me to register as a sole trader and start selling on Facebook initially. She helped me have faith in what I was creating.

What are your favourite items to craft?
I love making the family tree, each one is unique and somehow evolves into its own creative beauty. I also find comfort in making memorial keepsakes. Losing my mum in December 2018 made me realise how much comfort a little keepsake can be, and I have had customers send heartfelt messages of thanks after receiving their orders.

Where do you find your inspiration?
Life experiences are often my inspiration, whether my own personal experiences or within the wider community. Sometimes it’s as simple as a comment, a discussion with my children or noticing something when I’m out and about. Family and friends are a huge part of my life and will always inspire me through their actions and achievements.

Have you always been interested in following a creative career?
I have always enjoyed creative arts from a young child when I was a keen dancer, to developing interest in a range of crafts and creative skills growing up. I love attending craft fairs and meeting people, showing them what I make and sharing my passion for craft with them. I currently work full time in education, but my dream is to have a little tea room/shop one day and have the opportunity to expand my business.

How difficult is it to combine being creative with running a business?
As much as having a creative business is amazing, it is essential to take time to be ‘the business woman’. It is easy to get sucked into the creativity of your products and as many of you will know, many hours pass in this way. I find I need to timetable in the admin and promotion to ensure I keep on top of it.

What advice would you give to others who’d like to set up a creative business?
Believe in yourself. It takes nothing to register as a sole trader, so give it a go. Promoting your business on social media may be time consuming and not the most exciting part of business but it is also FREE advertising. Get your name and products out there.

Are there any new crafting techniques you’d like to explore?
I’ve always been fascinated by crochet, as there is something so delicate and beautiful about it. I think this is the one creative area I’d definitely add to my bucket list.

How does being creative make you feel?
Creativity provides a sense of calm in me. It is my ‘go to’ when I’ve had a tough day and want to distract myself. I can almost feel a wave of relaxation spread through my body.

Box-off

The work of Gavin Kinch, a blend of retro graphics and futuristic themes, is one of the coolest things to come out of Croydon in recent years. The Town That Love Built has become a buzzword for everything that’s stylish, cutting-edge and exciting about art, about Croydon and the place where the two meet. Now, in a new exhibition of his work running in Boxpark for the month of September, a whole dimension to his work is revealed. Newcomers to his work, prepare to be wowed, loyal followers, step up to the next level.

“The exhibition is called Croy:Fi and I guess it’s a collector’s edition: the hit single, a few rare cuts, a couple from the new record and one behind-the-scenes exclusive. As well as the pictures that people can see and buy, a lot of my work is for private clients so I’m really happy when I’m able to include these to exhibit.”

The Town That Love Built is a distinctive and unique body of work, overlaid with the artist’s characteristic signature. “If Walt Disney had bought up vast hectares of central Croydon instead of Florida swampland to build Walt Disney World, it would look like The Town That Love Built,” says Gavin.

His working career started in the music industry – with a self-confessed passion for audio electronics, he has run a recording studio in Croydon for many years. Explaining that when he couldn’t record he was researching and building audio units, and when he couldn’t solder things together, he needed something else to occupy himself.

“I bought a half-price app for my iPad which allowed me to connect shapes together while watching a movie or trying to sleep and around this time I received an email offering me a slot at a small art exhibition. I was sure I wasn’t an artist, so I ignored the request for as long as possible but eventually agreed, thanks to a little encouragement from the curator.

What drives his passion to create is seeing the beauty in “an engineered mistake” he explains.

“It’s seeing something the wrong way, a joke that nobody else would notice. The dominating theme of my work is taking something seen as commonplace and putting it in conflicting surroundings. In so doing we see that it wasn’t so common after all. I believe that’s where the humour and beauty of art lies.”

Gavin is no stranger to Boxpark, the works on his stall at the regular Made in Croydon makers’ markets at the venue regularly sell out by lunchtime. And, it turns out, preparing work for an exhibition is not so different to preparing work to sell at markets or to order for private commissions.

“It’s actually very similar. Every artist wants to be perpetually treading new steps but we forget that for each person familiar with our work, there will be another who will be seeing it for the first time, so they should get to see the story from the start.”

And pulling together the works for a keynote new show in his hometown doesn’t faze him. “Manic queues and noisy bars are nerve-wracking for me; putting together an art show is where I thrive. We build these worlds because we lose control of our surroundings and need to find a place that we can control so that we might reconnect with ourselves.”

And while Croydon is his beloved hometown, for the past year he has been living in France.

“It started as a post-holiday dare that kept growing until I ran out of excuses not to go.” Before that, he says, he had been gaining success, living in a great town with wonderful friends, but he wasn’t happy. He describes it as “slow drip”.

“You don’t notice at first and if you’re not careful one day you’ll wake up and a torrent hits you”.

“I needed to find the things that I had neglected and left behind along the way. We spend so much of our lives engineering situations – be they work, relationships, money – that stop us from looking at what we need because it’s reassuring to serve something else rather than look internally. So I wanted to feed myself – play the piano every day, walk in the sunshine, swim in rivers, learn a new language, exercise, eat well and – most importantly – have the time and space to create artwork.”

The process, he reveals, has not necessarily changed his work but certainly has changed his understanding of himself and the world a little. Why? Because it’s good for the soul to be an outsider once in a while, he explains – “even if our move was through privilege rather than obligation”.