This is a selection of past events from our archives. If you are interested in searching for specific events in the archive, please contact us. *****
27th Annual Exhibition of Artists in Michigan Prisons
Three hundred sixty unique artists inside 25 Michigan prisons are collaborating with the University of Michigan’s Prison Creative Arts Project (PCAP), to showcase 645 pieces of art including paintings, three-dimensional creations and drawings. The 27th Annual Exhibition of Artists in Michigan Prisons runs March 21st—April 4th at the Duderstadt Center Gallery. This exposition is the world’s largest display of its kind, where underground art meets academic exhibition. The exhibition can be viewed online or in person at the Duderstadt Gallery, 2281 Bonisteel Blvd. on U-M’s North Campus in Ann Arbor. Gallery hours are noon-6 p.m. Sunday and Monday; 10 a.m.-7 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday. Learn more about the exhibition here. ******
26th Annual Exhibition of Art by Michigan Prisoners
The Annual Exhibition of Art by Michigan Prisoners is one of the largest exhibitions of art by incarcerated artists in the country. Each year, faculty, staff and students from the University of Michigan travel to correctional facilities across Michigan and select work for the exhibition while providing feedback and critique that strengthens artist’s work and builds community around art making inside prisons. ******
Reda Taleb Book Signing + Moderated Discussion
Join us to celebrate the launch of Reda Taleb’s new book “Noura’s Extraordinary Superpower: A Book for Youth with Incarcerated Loved Ones and How to Activate the Innate Superpower of Empathy for Healing.” This book is the first in a series entitled “Ordinary People with Extraordinary Superpowers.” Stay tuned for upcoming books on how Noura and her family navigate the challenges of having an incarcerated loved one through a nuanced perspective of their community’s struggle to be seen, valued, and heard within the collective struggle for equity and inclusion. Books will be available for sale following the event, including book signing and pictures. Light refreshments will be served. Please register here in order to help us get a count on attendance. We are delighted that you will be joining us in our new space! Questions? Please contact us via email: redaataleb@gmail.com Register for the event here! ******
A Little More, While I Can
August 12th – September 19, 2022 Triple Crown Towson Tattoo Artist and musician William B. Livingston III, in collaboration with Justice Arts Coalition, presents, A Little More, While I Can, an exhibition hosted by York and Penn Fine Art Gallery. The exhibition marks the launch of Livingston’s new book, “Live from the Cell Block: Will Livingston and His Silk Screen Machine.” Best-known for his concert poster prints created on a hand-built silk screen machine, A Little More, While I Can, highlights another exciting and inspiring body of Livingston’s work. Showcasing his vast repertoire of acrylic works, the exhibition accentuates the lively and colorful spirit of York & Penn Fine Art Gallery and downtown Towson. The paintings, all created by Livingston while in prison, are colorful and bold, and transport both artist and viewer into a vibrant dreamscape. Livingston hopes visitors to the exhibition will feel drawn to them as strongly as he felt compelled to create them. A Little More, While I Can opens Friday, August 12 at Triple Crown Tattoo in Towson, MD with an opening reception from 6:00 to 9:00 PM EDT. The exhibition will run until September 19, 2022. ******
Emergence
July 22 – October 16, 2022 Workhouse Arts Center
Justice Arts Coalition and Workhouse Arts Center present Emergence, an exhibition running from July 22 through October 16, 2022. Emergence features works by artists previously and currently confined to carceral institutions across the United States. Emergence not only bears witness to Workhouse Arts Center’s past, but to the current state of the carceral system in the U.S. Through the works of over 30 artists, this exhibition invites viewers to explore and question the circumstances in which both the venue and the artworks were made, and asks them to consider what is possible by reclaiming a space created for captivity and transforming it into a place of creative possibilities. The exhibition opens July 22, 2022. A reception will be held on August 13 from 6:00 to 8:00 PM featuring artist talks and a teach-in led by the End the Exception Project. Read more about the exhibition and register for the reception here. ******Busboys and Poets Brookland
April 10th – September 11th, 2022 Washington, DC
Blooming in the Desert
April 30th – May 29th, 2022 LionheART Gallery, Bridgeport, CT
LionheART proudly welcomes & presents a diverse collection of JAC community artists that showcases a wide variety of different mediums, subject matters, and as always and most importantly, strength of voice. LionheArt is a 501(c)-3 art space & gallery in downtown Bridgeport CT that places emphasis on supporting local Bridgeport metro artists, social justice programming and offers free open paint for all every Sunday from 2-6pm.
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Degrees of Separation
May 1st – May 22nd, 2022 Catonsville, MD
Degrees of Separation explores the relationship that proximity and spatial relation have with an individual’s ability to understand, experience, and engage. Just as physical distance changes one’s perspective regarding a piece of artwork, so is one’s understanding of the carceral system shaped by their proximity to a person impacted by the system. Utilizing the Baltimore County Arts Guild gallery’s unique space, the exhibit challenges each viewer’s engagement with the art. JAC hopes that this experience with the art will challenge viewers to examine their own understanding of incarceration.
******Performance: Beyond Bars
Monday, March 25th in Washington, DC Join the DC Center, DC Anti-Violence Project, and Center Arts for Beyond Bars: Poetry and Performance of Formerly Incarcerated LGBTQ Folx. This night will be filled with poetry, comedy, performance and testimony from those with lived experience. Come support the community and the amazing performers! This event is free to attend and open to the public, and will be hosted by Rayceen Pendarvis. FREE EVENT – MUST RSVP TO ATTEND: http://thedccenter.org/events/beyondbars-2/ *****
Conference: Beyond the Bars 2019
March 7th-10th, 2019 in New York City Join us for the 9th Annual Beyond the Bars Conference of the Center for Justice at Columbia University that will focus on both the incarceration and criminalization of women and girls themselves as well as of their families and communities. Our focus is inclusive of transgender, non-binary, and gender non-conforming people. The many struggles for justice, equity and safety led by women and girls directly impacted by the criminal legal system will be at the heart of the conference as we create a space to further strengthen and advance change. Beyond the Bars 2019 will continue developing the collaboration between universities and the many ongoing efforts to end mass incarceration. *******
Conference: Thinking Gender – Feminists Confronting the Carceral State
Friday, February 22nd, 2019 in Los Angeles, CA The US justice system is a site of widespread gendered and race-based violence. The U.S. currently incarcerates nearly a third of all female prisoners in the world, and between 1977 and 2004, the number of women in U.S. prisons increased by an unprecedented 757%. As a 2015 CSW co-sponsored report revealed, women suffering from mental illness in LA County jails are routinely denied treatment, medication, and reproductive hygiene products, and are disproportionately punished with solitary confinement. LGBTQ women are also disproportionately impacted: nearly 40% of incarcerated girls identify as LGBTQ, while nearly one in six transgender Americans, and one in two black transgender people, have been to prison.
Emerging student scholars and activists will reckon with these issues through feminist and queer perspectives.
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Exhibtion: Inside Insights – San Quentin Arts in Corrections
January 10th through March 28th, 2019 in San Rafael, CA “Inside Insights” will showcase some 100 works including original paintings, prints and sculptures by San Quentin inmates who are part of the Arts in Corrections (AIC) programs, works by AIC instructors, photographs of inmates by Peter Merts and works by former San Quentin inmates. A wine and cheese reception for the opening will be held Wed., January 16 at the Bartolini Gallery. 10 Avenue of the Flags, San Rafael. The exhibition is made possible by the support of the Marin Cultural Association, William James Association, Marin County Free Library Anne T. Kent California Room and Jeff Craemer. ******
Exhibition: Incarceration America
Opens on December 14, 2018 in Glendale, CA Acclaimed ReflectSpace gallery is launching its first exhibit exploring issues around the criminal justice system in the U.S. Titled, Incarceration Nation: the US Prison Industrial Complex, the artwork aims to highlight the prison industrial complex and brings together works by contemporary artists, collaborations, archives, prisoner-made art, and technology to speak to these statistics in unexpected ways. The Gallery is located inside the Glendale Downtown Central Library, 222 East Harvard Street, Glendale CA 91205. Incarceration Nation at ReflectSpace runs from December 14, 2018 to February 10, 2019. The Opening Reception will be from 7-9 pm on Friday, December 14, 2018. The exhibit is co-curated by Ara and Anahid Oshagan.
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Exhibition: Capitalizing on Justice
Opens October 11th, 2018 in New York City Capitalizing on Justice features the works of incarcerated artists from across the nation who have used their talents to express the ways they and their loved ones have been commodified. Spanning a variety of genres and styles, the works in this exhibition were made using limited resources: state-issued materials, prison contraband, and yard scraps. They were shipped in makeshift envelopes and tattered boxes from as deep in our criminal legal system as Arkansas’ death row and come together to make a strong statement against the prison industrial complex.
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Exhibition: Liberation/Incarceration
Through October 14, 2018 in Fullerton, CA Accounting for over 20% of the prisoners in the world, the United States has the highest rate of incarceration per capita than any other nation. This group exhibition will explore artistic themes of personal and societal oppression and liberation, photography documenting the sometimes cathartic stories and experiences of people in prison arts programs, as well as artwork by prisoners themselves. ******
Exhibition: The San Quentin Project: Nigel Poor and the Men of San Quentin Prison
October 18, 2018 – March 10, 2019 in Milwaukee, WI Gallery Talk Tuesday, January 29 at 1:30 This exhibition debuts Nigel Poor’s San Quentin Project and presents personal narratives about life inside prison through visual documents, photographs, and an acclaimed podcast. Begun in 2011, The San Quentin Project has evolved from Poor’s experience teaching visual literacy at the prison for the Prison University Project. Tracing the evolution of her social practice, from mapping exercises to essays and interviews, the work in this exhibition utilizes personal narrative to illuminate and counter common stereotypes the public might have about prison populations. ******
Zine and Video Launch: Care not Cages
Saturday, October 20th in Oakland, CA You are invited to a zine and video launch of a poetry, art, and video project on mental health by artists inside California jails and prisons. Artists will call in from inside and discuss the power of healing art practice and perform their pieces. Snacks and non-alcoholic beverages will be provided. ******
Training: Pongo Techniques for Facilitating Therapeutic Writing
October 27, 2018 in Seattle, WA Pongo offers a one-day training in Seattle to teach our approach and techniques. We would like to show you how to use poetry to help distressed teens understand and express their important issues and feelings. This is exciting and rewarding work! Please write to us to be placed on our email list, so you receive notice of upcoming trainings. We generally give trainings twice a year, in May and October. Our email address is pongo_publishing@hotmail.com. The training is intended to help anyone start a full poetry project on the Pongo model in an agency, school, or institution. In addition, the training can be used to help counselors and teachers incorporate Pongo methods into their ongoing work with both individuals and groups. As a follow up to this training, we also offer free phone consultation and advice to the participants. ******
Symposium: The Milwaukee Model: Envisioning the Role of the Arts in Criminal Justice Reform
November 1st through 3rd, 2018 in Milwaukee, WI This initiative seeks to bring artists and experts from around the country together with groups working in Milwaukee to discuss how arts and educational programming might shift perceptions and attitudes about the criminal justice system and incarcerated individuals. All symposium events are free and open to the public, but advance registration is recommended.
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Exhibition: Freedom of Art
Opening reception November 2nd, 2018 in Louisville, CO Exhibition runs through the end of November at the Walnut Gallery. ******
Symposium: Portraits of Justice
November 2nd, 2018 in Philadelphia, PA Portraits of Justice is a daylong symposium that will engage the public in reimagining the criminal justice system through the lens of art, advocacy, and policy reform. A diverse and robust roster of directly impacted artists, practitioners, government officials, and scholars will host a series of discussions to reflect upon local reform efforts, as well as engaging with the national dialogue that highlights strategic arts-based approaches to criminal justice reform. The symposium is the culmination of month-long programming, including a public art project, a new fellowship program, and a series of public performances. The work of Reimagining Reentry Fellow Luis Suave Gonzales will be on display. Registration is free and open to the public. Complimentary lunch will be provided. ******
Call for Submissions: ilylali
Through November 19th, 2018 ilylali is dedicated to publishing and uplifting the writing and visual art of individuals and collectives that dives into the magical, the fabulous, and the fabulist rivers that run through the day-to-day. ilylali publishes work that generates connections between individuals and the environment that both empower and liberate through this very specific and abundant magic. This project is supported by the Pratt MFA in Writing program’s literary journal, The Felt. Is there a way that a forest can be represented, in cities, in deserts, in oceans, in relationships? What role does the forest play in contemporary culture? What are the images we see of forests? What do we long for, from what are we escaping, and what are we looking to achieve within our spirits when we step into the mythical forest, or the unknown? How does the forest exist in your memory? What is the forest of this place? Where do we perform our secret rituals? What is the landscape of the darkness we are walking into? ilylali encourages individuals and collectives who have experienced forests in spaces that are urban, rural, and everywhere in between. The diversity, and creativity of the work is of priority for this call. Please send writing, up to 3 poems, and no more than 10,000 words of fiction, non fiction, prose, flash, or 2D visual art (300 dpi) by Monday, November 19th. Images will be printed in black and white, so please send work that will fit this format. For a printable call for submissions, including mailing address, follow this link. ******
Reading and Fundraiser: Pongo Live
November 8th, 2018 in Seattle, WA Please join us to celebrate the voice of Pongo Teen Writing with readings by:
- Aaron Counts – Creative Justice founding coordinator, writer, educator, counselor
- Dr. Georgia Stewart McDade – Poet, professor, charter member of African-American Writers Alliance
- Maven Gardner – Pongo poet, 2016-2017 Seattle Youth Poet Laureate
- Alan Olson – Pongo poet
- Raúl Sanchez – Poet and Pongo mentor in juvenile detention
Music by Jasper Lepak, whose “crystalline voice and lyrical phrasing is a wonder; a beacon of true musicality.” Complimentary glass of wine and light refreshments Please register to obtain free ticket, by November 5 ******
Call for submissions: The Columbia Journal
Submissions accepted through November 15, 2018 As part of a commitment to bring underrepresented voices into the public sphere, the Columbia Journal would like to extend a special invitation to incarcerated writers to submit their writing. Writers may submit work by mail at no fee. We accept submissions in the following categories: Fiction (up to 5,000 words), Nonfiction (up to 5,000 words), and Poetry (up to 5 pages). Writers can choose to submit their writing for general print publication, general online publication, and/or for consideration in our Winter Contest. Contest winners win a cash prize and will be published in the print Journal. Selected works will be published in print or online. Submission form here. ******
Conference: The New York Art for Justice Forum
November 16th, 2018 in New York City Volunteer Lawyers for the Arts, Rehabilitation Through The Arts and Kernochan Center for Law, Media and the Arts at Columbia Law School, in collaboration with California Lawyers for the Arts and Center for Institutional & Social Change at Columbia Law School will host the New York Art for Justice Forum at Columbia University on November 16, 2018. The Forum will explore the role of the arts in addressing mass incarceration and criminal justice reform in three areas: Youth, Arts in Prison and Arts in Community. Panelists and breakout facilitators will include legislators, thought leaders, and practitioners from the arts, advocacy, and corrections. The event will culminate with an art exhibition and reception. Speakers include:
- Anthony Annucci, Acting Commissioner, NYS Department of Corrections (Keynote)
- JoAnne Page, Executive Director, The Fortune Society
- Vincent Schiraldi, Senior Research Scientist, Columbia School of Social Work
- James C. Horton from Carnegie Hall
- Tommy Demenkoff, Director of Arts Education for the New York City Department of Correction
- Caits Meissner, Prison Program Manager, PEN America
The New York Art for Justice Forum is funded by the Art for Justice Fund, the Andy Warhol Foundation and Quentin Hancock Fund. ******
Conference and Call for Submissions: Prison Outside #2
November 21-23 in Helsinki, Finland Prison Outside #2 is a cross-disciplinary discussion on artistic projects in and around prison. It takes place on November 21st-23rd in Helsinki and will present speakers from Finland, Russia, Ireland, USA, Canada and Belgium. Our program will include presentations, round table discussions, film screenings, and workshops. Free Translation, an exhibition of artistic and literary works on imprisonment will be launched during the conference. We will discuss artistic practices in prison, and their effect on rehabilitation, understanding the histories of incarceration, and encouraging communication between people of different walks of life. For information about how to submit artwork for the exhibition, please click here.
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Talk: Carceral Aesthetics: Prison Art and Mass Incarceration with Nicole R. Fleetwood November 29th in Houston Join Nicole R. Fleetwood for a talk focused on contemporary art by currently and formerly incarcerated people. She will examine how incarcerated people use the limited materials available in prisons and their punitive confinement to create art that challenges the carceral state. This talk is in conjunction with the exhibition Walls Turned Sideways: Artists Confront the Justice System. ******
Call for Submissions: What We Know
Submissions accepted through January 4, 2019 The Center for American Progress is partnering with The New Press and the Formerly Incarcerated and Convicted People and Families Movement on a book of essays written by currently and formerly incarcerated people. This policy book based on the authors’ lived experiences and expertise will be edited by Vivian Nixon and Daryl Atkinson.
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Exhibition: Walls Turned Sideways: Artists Confront the Justice System
Through January 6th, 2018 in Houston Walls Turned Sideways: Artists Confront the Justice System features work by artists from across the nation that addresses the criminal justice system, mass incarceration, and the prison-industrial complex. Representing the full range of contemporary art production made in the studio and the social realm, the exhibition includes artworks that take social justice issues as a subject matter; and position the prison and court systems as structures for dismantling through institutional critique. The artworks in the exhibition are extraordinary for the scale and ambition by which they mobilize in order to bring visibility to offenses within the justice system. ******
Conference: The California Arts for Justice Forum
Tuesday, October 16, 2018 in Sacramento, CA This forum will highlight the role that the arts can play in addressing criminal justice reform in California. We expect a diverse group of stakeholders to attend: elected representatives, justice reform advocates, prominent artists, statewide arts organizations, corrections officials and returned citizens. Participants will be able to join in the discussion as we brainstorm and develop ideas for further action to show how art can impact behavior within institutions and during rehabilitation and re-entry, thereby helping to reduce recidivism which is in the interest of all citizens. Panels will include:
- Perspectives on Art and Justice Reform
- Convergence of Arts Education and Criminal Justice Reform
This forum, which is part of a national series taking place in six states, is funded by the Art for Justice Fund, the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, the Quentin Hancock Fund, and the Sacramento County Dispute Resolution Program, and presented by California Lawyers for the Arts, California State University, Sacramento, and the William James Association.
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Call for artists: Corrections Accountability Project
*Deadline extended to 9/10/18* We are excited to announce that the Corrections Accountability Project is hosting an art competition for incarcerated artists! Winning works will be showcased in fall of 2018 as part of a special exhibition hosted in partnership with our parent organization, the Urban Justice Center. Running for roughly three months, the exhibition will center on the harmful impact that commercializing our criminal legal system, and more specifically, our prisons and jails (e.g. phones, commissary, healthcare, etc.), has had on incarcerated individuals and their communities. We invite incarcerated artists to submit visual works, including, but not limited to, drawings, paintings, and collages, in any art style (e.g. realism, impressionism, abstract, graffiti, pop art, etc.) for consideration. Works may be done in any medium and any size. We will also accept some short poetry for hanging. All submitted pieces should respond to the theme: Capitalizing on “Justice”. ******
Conference: The Georgia Arts for Justice Forum
Friday, September 28 in Atlanta, GA Join elected representatives, justice reform advocates, prominent artists, arts organizations, and corrections officials as we discuss the role of art in criminal justice reform in Georgia. ******
Call for Submissions: Poetry magazine
Poetry magazine seeks submissions for special issue on poetry in the age of mass incarceration, to feature work by incarcerated writers. Please submit your own work or the work of incarcerated poets you work with, with their permission. Written submissions that are not selected for publication will be returned. Poets and artists selected for publication will be paid directly. Please feel free to distribute this sheet to your colleagues, especially teaching artists working with incarcerated writers. WHAT WE’RE LOOKING FOR: The best poetry written by incarcerated poets. HOW TO SUBMIT: Submissions can be sent via postal mail, email or Submittable. Email Holly Amos at hamos@poetrymagazine.org with the subject line “Submission – Incarceration issue.” Or send via postal mail to: POETRY ATTN Holly Amos, Submission – Incarceration issue 61 W Superior Street Chicago, IL 60654 Or submit online at: http://poet.ly/Shmq30l0Uo6 WHAT TO SUBMIT: 4 poems or less, not to exceed 10 total pages of poems, along with a brief, 20-30 word bio. DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSION: Sept. 3, 2018 Writers and artists will be notified if their work has been selected by Nov. 15, 2018 GUEST EDITORS: Joshua Bennett, Tara Betts, Sarah Ross IF YOUR WORK IS SELECTED FOR PUBLICATION: · Poetry will mail a contract, tax form, and a proof of the work to the poet for approval so we need an up-to-date email or postal mail address to contact them. Please include your contact information as well if you are submitting on behalf of an incarcerated poet. · Poetry pays $10 per line plus two complimentary copies of the issue. · Poetry acquires first rights to include the poem in the print, web, and digital issues of magazine as well as non-exclusive reprint rights, meaning the poet retains the full copyright to their work and can reprint the work however they’d like once it’s been published in Poetry. About POETRY MAGAZINE and this issue: Founded in Chicago by Harriet Monroe in 1912, Poetry is the oldest monthly devoted to verse in the English-speaking world. Monroe’s Open Door policy, set forth in volume 1 of the magazine, remains the most succinct statement of Poetry’s mission: to print the best contemporary poetry, of any style, genre, or approach. The magazine established its reputation early by publishing the first important poems of H.D., T.S. Eliot, Marianne Moore, Ezra Pound, Carl Sandburg, Wallace Stevens, William Carlos Williams, and other now-classic authors. In succeeding decades, it has presented—often for the first time—works by almost every major contemporary poet. Poetry has always been independent, unaffiliated with any institution or university—or with any single poetic or critical movement or aesthetic school. It continues to print major English-language poets and emerging talents in all their variety. In recent years, more than a third of the authors published in the magazine have been writers appearing for the first time. On average, the magazine receives more than 150,000 submissions per year from around the world. This special issue of Poetry is intended to highlight the voices of incarcerated writers, as well as the voices of the family, friends, and communities they hold dear, across the United States. It was created in the wake of a reading and public discussion at Harvard University entitled A Provocation: Poetry in the Era of Mass Incarceration. As a result of the conversations held in that space—not only about the need for programs that cultivate creative writing opportunities for incarcerated people, but also the lack of publishing opportunities for the millions of folks currently held in our nation’s prisons, jails, and juvenile detention centers—one of the editors of the special issue, Dr. Joshua Bennett, reached out to the Poetry Foundation in an effort to bring this project into the world. As it stands, our collective aim is to contribute to an ongoing, national conversation at the intersections of the literary arts, critical pedagogy, and the fight against mass incarceration. It is our hope that this special issue is only the beginning of that much larger endeavor. ******
Conference: The Texas Art for Justice Forum
The Houston Museum of African American Culture (HMAAC) and Texas Accountants and Lawyers for the Arts (TALA), in collaboration with California Lawyers for the Arts (CLA), will convene the Texas Art for Justice Forum on July 14, 2018 at the Museum. The forum is designed to expand the role that the arts can play in addressing mass incarceration and criminal justice reform as part of a nationwide discussion in six states. As part of this forum, the Museum will hold panel discussions that will include legislators, arts and criminal justice reform advocates and returned citizens, will facilitate dialogues in breakout sessions, and will curate a month long exhibition of artwork created by incarcerated individuals and returned citizens. This program is funded by the Art for Justice Fund, the Andy Warhol Foundation, the Quentin Hancock Fund and the Texas Commission on the Arts. Join HMAAC, TALA, CLA and Texans for the Arts in dialogue and discussions geared toward recommendations to advance criminal justice reform through arts engagement. The event will be held from 9:30 am to 6 pm on Saturday, July 14 at the Museum at 4807 Caroline Street at Houston, Texas 77004. Admission is free, but your RSVP is requested in advance by July 7. Lunch will be provided for preregistered attendees. Presenters include: Rep. Garnet Coleman, Member, Texas House of Representatives District 147 John Abodeely, CEO, Houston Arts Alliance Gary Gibbs, Ph.D., Executive Director, Texas Commission on the Arts Sandra Guerra Thompson, Director, University of Houston Criminal Justice Institute Leah Pinney, Executive Director, Texas Criminal Justice Coalition SaulPaul, Musician and Activist
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Call for submissions: The Soze NYC Call for Public Art
Through March 31, 2018 The Soze Agency is excited to announce: The Soze NYC Call For Public Art; an opportunity for formerly incarcerated artists and artists impacted by the criminal justice system. The Soze NYC Call For Public Art is designed to create original public art that inspires criminal justice reform. The first call will include five artists whose work will be featured in the five boroughs of New York City, with the hope of inspiring community members, policy makers, advocates and others to join the movement for criminal justice reform. Artists may be at any stage of their career. Applicants must be New York City based. We strongly encourage women, DACA recipients and LGBTQ individuals to apply. Artists will receive a $5,000.00 honorarium.
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Call for artwork: Dreams of Peace, Freedom & Justice
Ongoing LPJ/SAVE, a newly merged European human rights organization and active campaigners on behalf of US death row inmates and others, is calling for art contributions for a new online exhibition provisionally titled “Dreams of Peace, Freedom & Justice”. The artwork should reflect some aspect of this broad theme and be accompanied by a few words of explanation. It is hoped that high quality, deeply personal work will emerge, and can take the form of drawing, painting, sculpture, 3D, poetry or prose, etc. LPJ/SAVE will accept physical artwork (non-returnable) or high quality digital photo images (which friends or family can take of the original). While it is hoped that inmates will make the bulk of contributions, all other interested parties are also invited to participate. Please circulate this information widely.
Flyers are available to download for distribution to inmates, or for the use of friends and other interested parties – pdf here or jpg here. The flyer gives full guidance and instruction for submission.
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Conference: The third biennial international Shakespeare in Prisons Conference
March 22-25, 2018, San Diego The third biennial international Shakespeare in Prisons Conference (SIPC) will be held March 22–25, 2018 at The Old Globe in San Diego, part of the theatre’s evolving Arts Engagement and Globe for All programs designed to make theatre matter to more people. SIPC offers prison arts practitioners the opportunity to share their collective experiences working with incarcerated and post-incarcerated populations; rejuvenate passion; renew commitment for their vocation; and build upon their expanding network of peers. Artists and educators engaged in transformational arts programs using Shakespeare in prisons around the world are brought together to explore and study the effects arts programming has on prison populations. SIPC promotes a collaborative learning forum that exposes participants to a diverse array of programs that all strive for a common result: the habilitation of the prisoner’s mind, heart, body, and spirit. Shakespeare at Notre Dame staged the first and second SIPC in November 2013 and January 2016, respectively. The Shakespeare in Prisons Conferences initiative is a flagship program of the Shakespeare in Prisons Network, founded at the University of Notre Dame by Curt L. Tofteland, Founder and Producing Director of Shakespeare Behind Bars; Scott Jackson, Executive Director of Shakespeare at Notre Dame; and Dr. Peter Holland, McMeel Family Chair in Shakespeare Studies at the University of Notre Dame. The conference is targeted to:
- Prison arts practitioners and theatre artists;
- Area correctional-center officials;
- Scholars engaged in research documenting prison arts experiences and the effects of arts in corrections programs;
- Academic community members and students from universities around the world.
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Panel Discussion: Redesigning the System: How Artists, Policymakers, and Practitioners Are Shaping Criminal Justice Reform
April 4, 2018, Chicago, IL The School of the Art Institute of Chicago (SAIC) and Illinois Humanities will present a panel discussion exploring the role of art and design in humanizing mass incarceration, strategies for reducing the number of Americans caught up in the criminal justice system, and the possibilities and restrictions of reform. Over the past 30 years, America’s prison population has boomed, with the US now housing 5% of the world’s population but 25% of its prisoners. There is no doubt this comes at a high cost to taxpayers, those incarcerated and their families, and society as a whole. With the highest incarceration rates in the world, artists, policymakers, and practitioners have sought to redesign the complex systems and structures that comprise our criminal justice system and fix America’s problem of over incarcerating its residents. Panelists: Moderated by Carroll Bogert–President, The Marshall Project Honorable Ruben Castillo–Chief Judge, United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois Kim Foxx–State’s Attorney Jeff Korzenik–Chief Investment Strategist, Fifth Third Bank Toni Preckwinkle–Cook County Board President Sarah Ross–Adjunct Assistant Professor, SAIC 6:00-7:30pm at The Art Institute of Chicago, 111 South Michigan Avenue, Chicago, IL ******
Exhibit: PCAP’s 23rd Annual Exhibition of Art by Michigan Prisoners
March 21 – April 4, 2018 The Prison Creative Arts Project is proud to announce the dates for the upcoming 23rd Annual Exhibition of Art by Michigan Prisoners. The Annual Exhibition of Art by Michigan Prisoners is one of the largest exhibitions of art by incarcerated artists in the country. Each year, faculty, staff and students from the University of Michigan travel to correctional facilities across Michigan and select work for the exhibition while providing feedback and critique that strengthens artist’s work and builds community around art making inside prisons. The event is free and open to the public. Sunday-Monday, 12pm-6pm/Tuesday-Saturday, 10am-7pm Closed on Sunday, April 1 Duderstadt Center Gallery, University of Michigan North Campus, 2281 Bonisteel Blvd, Ann Arbor, MI ******
Screening & Discussion: Making Me Whole. Prison, Art & Healing
March 18, 2018, Hartford, CT In a rare opportunity, Making Me Whole. Prison, Art & Healing takes the viewer inside prison walls to hear and see firsthand from women and men about the influence Bridging Boundaries has had on them. The footage also sheds light on the struggles that children with incarcerated parents face, and how the Judy Dworin Performance Project (JDPP), in partnership with social workers, helps them navigate their way using the arts to deal with their most often tightly held secret. The 30-minute documentary, filmed as a partnership production with CPTV, features the JDPP’s community partners articulating the value and significance of these programs, and the powerful transformations that come from continued support to those returning to our communities. This project was funded in part by a distinguished national grant from the Mellon Foundation and Mid-America Arts Alliance. The Judy Dworin Performance Project was one of 6 organizations in the country to be selected for this award. Please join us for a talkback after the film with Judy Dworin and Robin Cullen, a returning citizen who is now a JDPP teaching artist and on the Board of Directors. 12:30pm Cinestudio Trinity College 300 Summit Street Hartford, CT
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Art show and sale: Art from the Inside Art Show & Sale
February 12 – 15, 2018, Atlanta, GA Mrs. Marvin Wiggins, better known to her grown grandchildren as “Beanie,” was married to the Superintendent at Mississippi State Penitentiary in Parchman, Mississippi. When one of those grandchildren, Atlantan Lucy Fugate, was going through some of her deceased grandmother’s things, she stumbled upon a yellowed newspaper article describing an art show her grandmother staged at her husband’s prison over 60 years ago. She found a lovely portrait of her grandmother that had been done by an inmate in one of the contests and was amazed at the talent it displayed. As a way to honor her grandmother’s efforts to benefit and rehabilitate prisoners, Fugate approached Atlanta-based HeartBound Ministries, a non-profit organization supporting Georgia’s correctional staff and inmates, with an idea to resurrect the show and sale of inmate art. “Art from the Inside” showcases the often-hidden and significant talents of many prisoners in our state, and the sale of their art benefits HeartBound’s Little Readers program, which allows children of incarcerated parents to see and hear their parent reading to them via DVD. Sloppy Floyd Building, 2 MLK, Jr. Dr, Atlanta, GA 3033 Samples of artwork for sale:
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Exhibit: Script from Within
January 10 – February 28, 2018, St. Paul, MN Script from Within is a collaborative visual art project that incorporates authentic handwritings of women who are incarcerated in MN, confronting viewers with the humanity behind mass incarceration of women. Artist’s talk and reception Thurs, February 15, 6:00pm, Room 123 Mitchell Hamline School of Law, 875 Summit Ave, St Paul, MN
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Exhibit: Unchained Artists
January 15 – March 9, 2018, Mill Valley, CA “Unchained Artists,” an exhibition featuring some 50 pieces of artwork, poetry, and handcrafted art objects made by men and women incarcerated in the United States, including prisoners on San Quentin’s death row, will open this Monday, January 15, in Marin County, California. The exhibit is a first-time collaboration between ArtReach, which was founded by UK artist Nicola White to provide a platform for prisoners on San Quentin’s death row to exhibit their work, and P.A.T.H.: Prison Arts Touching Hearts, founded by Leslie Lakes, a Marin County artist, to give incarcerated men and women a vehicle to give back to the community in a meaningful way. Many of the pieces will be available for purchase. The art will be on display in the lobby of the Bank of Marin, at 19 Sunnyside Avenue in Mill Valley, through March 9. ******
Conference: Arts in Corrections: Building Bridges to the Future
June 26 – 30, 2017, Los Angeles, CA California Lawyers for the Arts, in association with the William James Association and Loyola Marymount University, will present the national conference, Arts in Corrections: Building Bridges to the Future, at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles. The conference venue is located a short distance from the Los Angeles International Airport (LAX). For more information, please contact: aic@calawyersforthearts.org
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Event: NYWC15: A Celebration of 15 Years of NY Writers Coalition
Friday May 19, 2017 7-9PM Join NY Writers Coalition in celebrating 15 years of community-based writing workshops throughout NYC! Ticket Information
Event: Bremerton, WA
Through July 30, 2011
Exhibition: Drawings from the Texas Prison System
Showing at Collective Visions Gallery ******
Event: International Fine Art Competition for Incarcerated Persons
Deadline for Entries: July 31, 2011
Sponsored by Art and Prison e.V., a Berlin-based non-profit organization, this competition is open to artists in prison and artists outside prison who explore themes in criminal justice. Visit the site for the competition poster and entry details. ******
Event: Belmont, CA
May 28, 2011
Poetic Justice Project presents ‘Off the Hook’
The performance will take place at the Notre Dame de Namur University Theater, 1500 Ralston Avenue, Belmont. The play, set in a California prison, features a 15-member cast of formerly incarcerated people. The performance is co-sponsored by the Alternatives to Violence Project California. For more information contact Deborah Tobola, Artistic Director at (805) 264-5463 or e-Mail staff@poeticjusticeproject.org
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Event: New York, New York
May 20, 2011
Concrete Steel & Paint: An Evening of Film and Conversation
After the screening at Maysles Cinema, participate in a dialogue with the filmmakers and NYC community leaders, including: Denise Paul, Harlem Mothers SAVE; Miguel Adams, Riverside Church Prison Ministry and Amy Sanaman, Groundswell Community Mural Project. Moderated by King Downing, AFSC Healing Justice Program
