We speak to a man who raises awareness of bike theft in London... by making furniture.
Cameron Griffin studied Product and Furniture Design at university. But rather than take a conventional route to designing sofas and coffee tables, he's adopted a more unusual approach: turning broken and discarded bicycle locks into art. We speak to him about his motivation and practice, ahead of a new exhibition.
Creating art from bike theft is quite an imaginative leap... where did the idea come from?
I have always been fascinated by using overlooked materials and the idea of "revalorisation". Living and cycling in London means that I have seen lots of cut locks, abandoned bikes etc. Only recently did I start to think more about them. The materials still hold their inherent value despite not being able to be used for their intended use anymore.
It seemed like an obvious route to respond to the issue of bike theft by creating physical objects and pieces of furniture, using the remnants of the crime. It was important in the response and process that I was of course not attempting to solve the issue, but instead come up with playful responses which raise awareness for the large effect bike theft has in London.
Rather than putting statistics on a poster or flyers up about how bad bike theft is, I believe that making interesting objects which pique people’s curiosity and spark conversation can be a more effective tool for raising awareness. It widens the audience. Cyclists are generally going to care more about bike theft than would people who don’t cycle, but if I can create objects that most people can relate to or appreciate, then hopefully it will raise more awareness for the issue of bike theft in London.
Your creations are made from broken bike locks... how do you source these? Do you just walk about looking for broken locks lying around, or do you put out requests on social media... or what?
I cycled round the city. I began by documenting cut locks, dismantled bikes, lone wheels which had been left at bike posts/lampposts across London. I then started picking up some of the locks that had been cut and left to rust. I took them back to the workshop where I cut them up and welded them to make different shapes, looking at how the shapes that existed in the original D-lock design could be reimagined in different arrangements to create new forms.
I had friends also looking out for cut locks and picking them up when they could, or letting me know where they were. It became a bit strange when my friend had his bike stolen and one of his first thoughts was to look for the cut lock so he could give it to me.
Which bits of London were particularly good for finding discarded D-locks?
I live in north London so, naturally, my cycling routes were local most of the time. I would notice cut locks even if I wasn’t out looking. I find and notice more cut locks and dismantled bikes in east London where there seems to be lots of cyclists. I would often do the same routes and notice new cut locks or missing wheels on a weekly or bi-weekly basis, which really emphasised to me how big an issue this is. Having said this I don’t think it is restricted to any specific area in London but is a city-wide problem. Reading victim reports of bike theft shows that it can happen anywhere at any time.
Have you ever had your own bike nicked?
I did have my bike stolen as a child from out the front of my house, but since then I have only had bike lights stolen. I try to make it look harder to steal than the bikes around mine, as most thieves will go for the easier option. It also helps that my bike isn’t worth loads of money.
What can people expect to see in the exhibition?
At People and Places exhibition I will be showing all the current 20,000 collection (named after the number of bikes reported stolen in London each year). This is made up of distorted locks, all responding to bike theft in different ways or answering questions of how we stop our bikes getting stolen, in a playful way. I've also made a booklet about my project which will be for sale, with photos collected throughout the project of cut locks or abandoned bike parts as well as pictures of the pieces I have made with explanations.
I am also showing alongside 13 other emerging artists and designers who work in a range of mediums. Each practitioner exhibiting has responded to issues from their individual habitus, with works exploring a variety of stories around climate, wellbeing, and community.
If people want to buy your work, or request a commission, how should they contact you?
Send me a message on my Instagram @camerongriffin_d or shoot me over an email at [email protected]. I often post updates and will be posting any new stuff I’m working on over on my Instagram so give me a follow if you want to keep up to date.
Cameron Griffin's 20,000 Collection will be at People & Places exhibition, 29 November 2024 to 11 January 2025 at Hypha HQ Gallery, Unit 3, Euston Tower. Entrance is free. Griffin's work will be alongside that of 13 other emerging artists and designers, including Mercedes Plazola's transformative repurposing of coffee sacks; Maria Gil reimagining Polish design history through the lens of post-war scarcity and resilience; Zaccaria Slater on the deep emotional connections we form with food; and Hannah Rot who uses unfired London clay as a renewable and recyclable material for dynamic and transient designs.
