By Clare Walker, JAC Intern Mike Tran has been dabbling in art and drawing his surroundings since childhood. At an early age he "cursed a dream that was imposed on [him]." His talent, he says, was acknowledged but never encouraged. As the years passed, school and work began to take priority and art was put …
Category: Blog
Captivity Without Sunlight
Guest Contributor: Marcus Pettiford I have not been exposed to sunlight in 27 days. Who knew that sunlight is such a luxury? There are people in the nation without clean drinking water. We’re called “prisoners.” Not to mention the children in Flint. Everyday I scrape my soul for humanity just to make it through. The …
Teaching Artist Spotlight: Rowan Renee
Recently, JAC had the chance to speak with Rowan Renee. Rowan (b. 1985, West Palm Beach, Florida) is a genderqueer artist based in Brooklyn, NY. Their work addresses the intersections of gender-based violence, intergenerational trauma and mass incarceration through State records and family archives. In 2019, they acquired the contents of their father's criminal case …
Artist Spotlight: Chris Schulze
By Ian Trawinski, JAC Intern The visual work of artist Chris Schulze stands out amongst its peers thanks to the preternatural geometric perfection present throughout many of these pieces. Chris displays a level of skill which surpasses that of even the most finely tuned machines, those whose ability to produce straight lines, perfect circles, and …
The Challenges of Pursuing Higher Education in Prison
Guest Contributor: Conor Broderick Most college students would agree that there is nothing easy about getting a degree. Yet despite the hardships there are some individuals who are driven to enrich themselves while serving a prison sentence. Understandably, the educational playing field in prison is not the same from institution to institution. Pursuing a degree …
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