Inside Out: art in an atmosphere of oppression

Editors, Asheville Global Report,

AGR #175 arrived today and I was glad to see the upcoming Prison Art Show on the front page. [Ed. note: See Events in the Resource guide for information.]

I would like to say that I am not merely interested in “selling the prisoners’ art” for them. I am a prison abolitionist and changing the public’s misconception of prisoners is a step towards abolition.

In the 1860’s the French artist Gustave Courbet joined a growing debate about doing art in an atmosphere of oppression. Courbet himself was briefly imprisoned for criticizing the state, but he couldn’t imagine working under the brutal conditions of the US prison system!

I asked the artists to talk about themselves. Nancy wrote to say, “Art and creating are important to us. Our time is not our own and there are so many interfering demands. But art is the escape. They can take away our supplies but they cannot take away the creative force.”

I have been an artist all my life. I seriously question whether I could have created my work had I been subjected to the conditions in which these “inside” artists live. They have amazing talent, fortitude, strength, and the will to persevere.

Carol Strick
West Palm Beach, Florida