Paradise Press is an idea born out of lockdown from flatmates Patrick Hickley and Annabel Hawkins. Their vision is to connect young artists with young buyers in a new sustainable way.
“The concept came from the lost possibility of travel,” says Hickley. “Everyone’s spent so much time within their walls this year, we wanted to bring a piece of paradise into that space.”
“We know so many talented people making amazing art on the side, we knew it deserved to be seen.”
The platform features photography, graphic prints and zines by young local creatives, including Bel Williams, Alice Clifford and Hickley himself.
The ‘slow art’ initiative is inspired by the ‘slow’ movements that have emerged in industries like food and fashion in the past few years.
The collections sold on Paradise Press are all limited edition and orders are printed at the end of the campaign period and sent out the following month, thus reducing deadstock and waste.
Through the new buying model, Hawkins and Hickley are seeking to slow down the instant gratification that has become intertwined with online shopping and foster a deeper appreciation for art.
“When we learn to wait for the things we want, we appreciate their value way more. Paradise Press is a platform that untangles the quickfire satisfaction of buying things online by slowing down the whole process,’ says Hawkins.
Profits from art sales go to the artists and The Kindness Institute, an organisation that supports the mental wellbeing of marginalised rangatahi. The first collection launched on 31 July and runs until the end of August.