The SoCro Art Fair returns next weekend, on Sunday 8 November, at Coombe Wood School in South Croydon. The fair has been on my radar for a couple of years, but alas, diary dates haven’t aligned until now. So I’m excited to finally visit, especially with my Christmas shopping hat on! With original artwork, handcrafted ceramics, textiles, unique jewellery and more to peruse, I suspect I’ll be spoilt for choice. But SoCro Art is much more than its annual fair, so this week I caught up with founder Sharmina Karim to find out more.

Croydonist: For readers who haven’t encountered you before, what is SoCro Art?

Sharmina: SoCro Art is a social enterprise based in South Croydon. We are a creative platform that aims to make art accessible and bring people together through creativity. The aim is simple: to support local artists and makers, giving them opportunities to show and sell their work and connect directly with local people.

Since 2023, we have run ongoing art workshops for both adults and children at the SoCro Art studio, as well as ad hoc exhibitions and the annual SoCro Art Fair. Most recently, we have set up the SoCro Art Gallery and organised Weekend Pop up stalls at the Coach House Café.

There is so much creative talent in and around Croydon. We want people to see it!

Croydonist: Who’s behind SoCro Art, and what inspired you to set it up?

Sharmina: Moi! I’m a French artist, art teacher and, I suppose, an entrepreneur at heart. The idea of building something of my own in the art world actually goes back to 2006.

I organised my first art exhibition in 2007 while still working full-time in financial services. Out of 500 entries, 70 artists were selected and we sold £22,000 worth of paintings, with half of the proceeds going to the NSPCC and the remainder to the artists. A year later, I left the banking world and set up a small art consultancy, working on art procurement for corporate clients and interior design agencies.

Life took me back into programme and change management for a while, but my creative mind remained strong and the pull even stronger. So in between pregnancies and my career, I studied at KLC, sold my own work and wrote illustrated children’s books and novels.

Then in 2020, I finally decided to focus on creativity full-time, starting with children’s art classes and an active and creative holiday camp, and after meeting a local artist, the idea for SoCro Art began to take shape. Although the first art fair was launched in 2023, SoCro had been quietly brewing for nearly 20 years. And I haven’t looked back since.

Croydonist: Your annual art fair is returning on 8 November. What can visitors expect from this year’s event?

Sharmina: A lot! This year, there are 54 creatives under one roof, with paintings, prints, ceramics, jewellery, stained glass, textiles, candles, illustration, fashion, woodwork; we have them all. Alongside the stalls, around 15 artists will also be exhibiting their original artwork.

The beauty is that visitors are buying directly from the person who made it and can find out more about the story behind each piece of work.

The SoCro Art Fair really is for everyone; families, children, grandparents, friends, serious art lovers or people who simply fancy a good browse.  With Christmas approaching, it is also the perfect opportunity to find something unique, and anyone who registers (either online or at the check in desk on the day) and attends the fair will be entered into our prize draw…. (Please note that attendance will be verified at the venue).

Croydonist: The fair has grown considerably since launching in 2023, with 54 artists and makers taking part this year. How has it evolved over the past few years?

Sharmina: It’s grown largely through word of mouth, which I love. Creatives tell other creatives, visitors come back and bring friends, and each year we meet more people. We now have a real mixture of returning faces and people exhibiting or selling with us for the first time.

Although the Fair has grown, I don’t want to cram more and more stalls into the space just for the sake of getting bigger. It’s important to me that both visitors and stallholders have a good experience with enough room to browse, mingle, have a proper conversation, and get to know the creatives behind the work. That friendly, relaxed community feel is a big part of what makes SoCro, SoCro.

Croydonist: How far afield do your exhibitors come from, and can you introduce us to a few of the artists and makers taking part this year?

Sharmina: Stallholders are very much rooted in Croydon and South London, and a large number of our creatives are local, but people are travelling from much further afield this year from across London, Surrey and Kent, and even from Hampshire, Hertfordshire and Berkshire. I love that the Fair has developed that reach while still feeling very much like a Croydon event.

There is Samantha Foley, who turns Croydon landmarks into drawings, prints and cards; Halina Ward, who makes baskets using willow, rye straw, and foraged fibres; Sandie Bare who hand spins Kent wool before knitting it; and Karen Reid whose textured work celebrates Black identity, ancestry and beauty.

And there is so much more: stained glass, ceramics, lino printing, fashion, illustration, candles and even jewellery made from cement, polymer clay, and silver. A real creative treat for all the senses!

Croydonist: Why do you think events like SoCro Art are important for Croydon’s creative community?

Sharmina: Croydon is full of arty people, but a lot of that creativity happens quietly at kitchen tables, in spare rooms and garden studios.

Events like SoCro Art give our creative community an affordable, professionally run platform where they know there is a real commitment to making the event a success. A huge amount of work goes into organising and promoting the Art Fair, and for me it’s important that the creatives taking part feel supported, have a good experience and, hopefully, have a successful day too. For some of them, it’s their first ever fair, which is a big step. For visitors, it’s also a chance to see just how much creativity exists on their doorstep. And when you buy something, you know your money is going directly to the independent person who made it.

Croydonist: Beyond the annual fair, you’re involved in a number of other creative activities, from exhibitions to children’s art workshops. Can you tell us a little about these?

Sharmina: I am very proud of the SoCro Art Gallery at the Coach House Café in Coombe Wood. It gives local artists a lovely space to exhibit their work throughout the year, irrespective of background, age, gender, or experience. And because it’s in a café rather than a traditional gallery, people encounter art as part of their everyday lives. You can be having a coffee or walking through the park and discover an artist you have never come across before. I love that.

We have also recently introduced weekend pop-up stalls there over the summer, giving local artists and makers another way to sell their work directly to the public in a really relaxed setting.

SoCro Art also offers creative sessions for adults and workshops for children at weekends and during the school holidays, as well as ad hoc exhibitions and other opportunities for artists.

It’s all slightly different, but it comes back to the same idea: making creativity accessible and giving people opportunities to make, show and discover art locally.

Croydonist: And finally, what’s next for SoCro Art?

Sharmina: My brain never stops. I’m always looking for new opportunities. A few years ago, I even put a proposal to Urban Croydon to temporarily transform part of the Whitgift Centre into a creative hub, somewhere that could bring more life and activity into the heart of Croydon. I think I may have scared them off! LOL. However, I’m currently juggling SoCro with a full-time Foundation Course in Art & Design at City & Guilds, which keeps me pretty busy until May 2027! But I’d love to organise more events and create more opportunities for local artists and makers.

Change still is and will always be in my DNA. As my husband says: ‘oh dear, what now?’  So yes, there are definitely more ideas in the pipeline but for now, let’s make the 8th November another successful year.

Thank you to Sharmina for chatting with us.

Register here for your free place to visit this year’s SoCro Art Fair, which takes place on Sunday 8 November 2026, between 10am and 3.30pm, at Coombe Wood School, 30 Melville Avenue, South Croydon, CR2 7HY.

Follow SoCro Art on Instagram.

Images courtesy of SoCro Art

Posted by Julia