The Story Behind Green World Gallery

Pamela Campbell and Steve “Koz” Koslowski live in Ortonville, Michigan. Koz was a new construction plumber for 32 years. In February 2006, new home construction in Michigan was at a standstill, and Pamela encouraged Koz to spend two months at their leased home in Jamaica. This was the first time in his life that Steve had left their home town for more than two weeks.

Inspired by the vivid tropical colors, the sun and the sea, Koz began to paint “fun fish” on scrub brushes to clean the stone steps leading down to the sea. Our landlord and friend, Annabella Proudlock, discovered these brushes during her morning swim in the sea and told Steve, “I could sell these brushes in the gallery, and you could pay your rent with the money”.  Annabella Proudlock is a renowned Jamaican artist and the owner of Harmony Hall art gallery. Koz began painting brushes with the intention of selling the brushes in the gallery.

Later that month, Annabella invited Steve on a trip which included a visit to the Swift-Purscell Boys’ Home. Koz was immediately struck by the devastation to the home by a recent hurricane, and he knew he had to do something for these boys.  Within a few days, Koz knew that he would sell his brushes to raise money for the boys.

Steve began painting tropical “fun fish” on various wooden items- scrub brushes, hammers, toilet plungers, trinket boxes, grill sets, garden sets, etc. to raise money.  Koz  began selling these items in both Jamaica and the U.S. He had immediate success and was invited to participate as an Artist at the Harmony Hall art gallery during an art exhibition in March 2007. Two well known artists at the exhibition recognized his artistic ability and suggested that he begin painting on canvas. He took their advice and within six months his paintings were on display at Harmony Hall beside the works of famous Jamaican artists.

In 2008, Koz walked into Hilton Screening in Michigan to monogram a golf shirt with one of his “fun fish”.  The owners, Kent and Kim Elliott, admired his design and asked him if he ever considered putting his artwork on a t-shirt. Together, Pamela, Koz, Kent and Kim made up some sample pieces, and Green World Gallery was born.

They knew they wanted the store to reflect their values, and when Pamela came up with the idea to sell other artist’s work in the store, it made sense to give back some of the profits to each artist’s favorite charity.  Along the same line of giving, Pamela and Koz both cared deeply for the environment, and so it came naturally that their store and products would be as green and sustainable as possible.

They considered opening the new store in Jamaica or the Bahamas, where they had strong ties to the communities, but the reality of the constant travel in and out of the country dissuaded them.  Then Koz suggested opening the store in Key West, FL.  In December 2008, Kent and Kim visited Key West for the first time, and fell in love with the area. Over the next few months, everything fell into place to create Green World Gallery, where:

Our mission is to expand the enjoyment of art around the world by producing the finest quality wearable art based on original designs by local artists. We are committed to living in harmony with our environment by using the most environmentally-friendly products available including water based inks, organic cotton, hemp, and bamboo and recycled materials. Through our business, we hope to give back and make a difference in the world.

In May 2010, Pamela and Koz took over as full owners of the business.