About Turf
Turf Projects is Croydon’s homegrown contemporary arts space.
Founded in 2013 by local young artists, we support people to develop creative work that helps shape the world around us.
We do this through free exhibitions, workshops, collaborative projects, affordable artist studios, making facilities, resources and two artist collectives of young artists & learning disabled artists.
Focused on themes of place, space and belonging, Turf creates space and opportunities that;
- Nurture sustainable creative practices for emerging and underrepresented artists.
- Create welcoming, accessible ways for people to encounter and make art.
- Connect locally responsive programming to wider national conversations.
- Ground creative practice in everyday lived experience and environments
Rooted in Croydon, South London, we insist on the importance of spaces where different people, ideas and experiences can meet and build a sense of collective belonging.
Turf demonstrates how cultural organisations led by their communities can create change with national ambition, relevance and impact.
Since our founding, we have committed to providing paid opportunities for artists, creating over 600 such opportunities since 2013.
Turf is a registered charity (#1160527), and currently exists in a meanwhile-use retail unit in Croydon’s Whitgift Shopping Centre.
For more info or to get involved, please email us at info@turf-projects.com
Us!
Below is the current Turf team. Turf has been female-led since our beginnings in 2013.
As well as working at Turf we’re all practicing artists, so click on us to find out more.
We all work part-time. If you contact us please keep this in mind, though we try to respond as soon as we can!
Our Board
As a charity, Turf is also supported by a board of incredible trustees. Find out about them below.
Turf's Timeline
Turf was founded in 2013 by a group of young locals. We started off doing projects in public spaces, like PUTT PUTT.
In 2015 we moved into our first space in an empty retail unit on Keeley Road, thanks to crowdfunding from the local community and the GLA Meanwhile Use programme.
In 2017, we were told redevelopment would be happening in Croydon, and so we moved our main space into the Whitgift Centre. Keeley Road became affectionately known as 'Little Turf'.
In 2020-21 we weathered the storm of COVID, switching programmes to online, dropping off creative care packages and getting together online with studio members to keep our community supported.
2023 was a big year for us - we turned 10, became an Arts Council National Portfolio Organisation and delivered our largest scale project to date - all in the same year as Croydon was London Borough of Culture.
In 2025, Turf once again faces an uncertain future with our space threatened by redevelopment.
Want to help? Visit our donate page to support us or contact us if you can help in other ways.
Want to help? Visit our donate page to support us or contact us if you can help in other ways.
Supporters
Are you a business who wants to show their support for our charity in some way? Get in touch at info@turf-projects.com and let’s chat! Take a look below to see who’s helped us so far.
Thanks to:
➮ 34sp for hosting our website for free via their awesome charity hosting programme (strong recommend for their amazing support too).
➮ Richard Bray for hosting us for many years prior to that.
➮ All of our previous volunteers & Turf Friends.
➮ cartridgesave.co.uk for donating a set of toner and imaging drums.
➮ fastprint.co.uk for supporting us with stickers.
➮ POSCA for a donation of their amazing chalk markers.
Previous Team Members & Board Members
Chris Alton (Fungus Press Lead), Mandisa Apena (FoH & Marketing Assistant), Skye Baker (MOSS Programme Lead), Sophie Blagden (Head of Learning), Aisha Diallo (Finance and Administration Manager), Deborah Findlater (FoH & Marketing Assistant), Oscar Gaynor (Fungus Press Lead), Holly Graham (CoDirector, Programme Lead), Mira Hirtz (Access Lead), Natalie Mitchell (Community Producer: Programme and Production), Jhinuk Sarkar (CoDirector, Access lead), Rebecca Sainsot-Reynolds (Facilities Lead), Yolanda Shields (Operations & Facilities Coordinator), Isabelle Zhizhi Southwood (Head of Education & Community), Demelza Watts (Community Producer: Programme and Production), Charlotte Young (Community Producer: Development and Fundraising), Caroline Dawson, John Messenbird, Isabelle Zhizhi Southwood, Yusuf Osman, Eleanor Breeze, Ines Canellas-Jager, Eunice Dickinson, Mary Lee, Harriet Warden, Kamy Wicks, Jacinta Bridge, Doug Bowen, Mireille Fauchon, Aoife Flynn, Nigel Dias, Andrew Dickinson, Clair Donnelly, John Lawlor, Holly Lewis, David McLeavy, Jasmine Popper, Vincent Lacovara, Katrina Man
Co-founders
Alice Cretney, Aoife Flynn, B Atherton, Isabelle Zhizhi Southwood, Jack Friswell, Helena Wee, Tom Winter