- Venue
- Southbank Centre
- Location
Art from prisons is often included in the category of outsider art. Naturally some is pre-critical and outside the received criteria of Fine Art, but of course, even artists or people with some training in art go to prison, making prison art an unknowable mix of self-expression, skill, therapy, psychological realisation and grim humour. Amongst this, the Strength and Vulnerability Bunker exhibition by the Koestler Arts trust includes work from secure institutions – truly outsider art.
The one thing people have in prison is time, and so the level of drawing and craft skills tends to be high. With few resources and ziltch opportunities for more conceptual work, Koestler mainly shows things that can be hung on the wall, but also manages to include text, music, multimedia, poetry and performance amongst their categories.
Invited curator, the rapper Speech Debelle, has proven she has a talent for choosing works according to theme, giving the exhibition a coherent view considering the multiplicity of entries the Koestler Trust receives.
There are many outstanding and moving works, art which amazes through its sheer resourcefulness, and works which are seeringly powerful or sparking with potential. Especially memorable is a skeleton made entirely out of reclaimed chicken bones. If nothing else, other artists can recognise the creative compulsion and methodical practice this must have taken to make this happen within the restrictions of prison life. Another opposite to the usual Fine Art convention is the anonymity of the artists – now that’s conceptual – supposing we removed all the names from other galleries?
After prison, some of these artists will continue to pursue finding their artistic voice with a view to becoming practicing artists or finding a role in the arts industry. As a reminder of the importance, the intensity and essentialness of art, prison art tells it like it is. Awards are given, and the entire enterprise is a testimony to the power of art and the worth of every creative endeavour.
