By Hakim Bellamy About the guest blogger: Hakim Bellamy became the inaugural poet laureate of Albuquerque on April 14th, 2012, at age 33. He was the son of a preacher man (and a praying woman). His mother gave him his first book of poetry as a teen, a volume by Khalil Gibran. Many poems later, …

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Below is a message from Vidahlia Press and Publishing House. Vidahlia Press & Publishing House announces its first literary contest for those incarcerated in federal, state, or county prison. Approximately 2,000 federal and state correctional facilities in the country are participating in the Contest. The Prison Writing Contest will offer prizes including one year tuition payment …

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The following is a message from filmmakers at Passion River, who have recently released the film ‘Lost and Found’. Prison arts programs have, since their inception, been used to provide inmates with a more constructive use for their time. Analyses of the benefits of prison arts programs tend to focus, understandably so, on how the …

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The following is a message from the Hamilton College Digital Humanities Initiative.  The United States holds more prisoners and employs more prison staff than any other nation on earth.  But there is no central location where the public, policy makers, students or researchers can benefit from the many years of first-hand experience of prisoners and prison …

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PAC asked Reno Angelo Leplat-Torti, an artist and curator of exhibitions of Chicano prison art in France, to tell us a bit about himself, how his interest in prison art developed, and what kind of impact his exhibitions are having. My name is Reno Angelo Leplat-Torti. I was born in France, but my family emigrated …

Continue reading Paños created in US prisons spark the passion of exhibitor in France

World Cast Movie seeks prison arts practitioners who see the possibility of including prison performers in its worldwide film project. We have launched an open casting call for actors around the globe to fill the shoes of 12 roles for our film. The initial idea was inspired by the opportunity to give talented actors who …

Continue reading Thinking “Inside the Box” – a request for practitioners

By Katy McCarthy About the guest blogger: Katy McCarthy is the blog and media director at http://www.juvenile-in-justice.com. In 2011, she received her Bachelors degree from University of California, Santa Barbara in studio art. When not in her own studio, she is editing and blogging for Juvenile In Justice. Katy can be reached at blogdirector@juvenile-in-justice.com A …

Continue reading More than Decoration: Art in Juvenile Prisons

BleakHouse Publishing is proud to release our annual BleakHouse Review, an online literary magazine that serves as an outlet for original perspectives on the criminal justice system. BleakHouse Publishing devotes itself to the creative voices of the voiceless. You will hear from an array of talented American University students, as well as former inmates and current prisoners. Blending shades of …

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