FROM WITHIN Is Live
I’m excited to announce that the FROM WITHIN Art Show is officially live!
On Thursday, May 21, the show opened at ReVision Energy in South Portland. And I still can’t quite believe it’s real.
4 months ago, this was just an idea. A conversation between me and an incarcerated artist named Tremayne about what might be possible.1 Now, it’s a traveling art show featuring original work by 5 artists at Lawrenceville Correctional Center in Virginia.
Organizing an art show across prison walls, state lines, and even country lines (I was in Costa Rica for a good chunk of the planning) was challenging to say the least. And artists had about 4 weeks to complete their painting. They painted 2 to 4 each. But here we are.
And the community showed up. On day one, we raised over $1,000 to support art therapy and healing in underserved communities. Proceeds from event sales go to ArtVan,2 a Maine-based mobile art therapy nonprofit. That $1,000 will allow ArtVan to bring their services into 4 different neighborhoods, reaching people who don’t normally have access to that kind of healing.
That’s just day one. And this is just the beginning.
FROM WITHIN is built on 3 bridges.
The first is the bridge of healing through art. Every piece in this show was created by 1 of 5 incarcerated artists at Lawrenceville Correctional Center in Virginia. Art became their way through. And through ArtVan, the proceeds from this show extend that same healing to communities on the outside.
The second is the bridge between the inside and the outside. It’s easy to write off people in prison. Society tells us they don’t have value to offer. But spend 5 minutes with this artwork and that story falls apart. There’s beauty, skill, and humanity in these pieces. There’s a tremendous amount of locked up potential and love behind prison walls. This show is one way to help people on the outside see it.
The third is the bridge to families. When someone goes to prison, their whole family goes with them. Staying connected is expensive. A single message through prison communication systems costs about an hour’s worth of work for someone on the inside. That’s the price of telling your daughter you love her.
3 bridges. Healing, humanity, and family.
Now, here’s the part I’m excited to share. Several of you have reached out and said you’d love to support this work but can’t make it to Maine. I hear you. And now there’s a way.
The FROM WITHIN online store is live.
All original paintings and calendars are available on the website, with 100% of the proceeds going to ArtVan.
You’ll also find prints, shirts, and other items, with proceeds going back to the artists’ families. You can shop by painting or artist.
And if you are in Maine or nearby, the next show is June 5 at Orange Bike Brewing in Portland. Come see the work in person. Meet the community that’s forming around it.
This show is proof of what happens when you follow love instead of fear. A painting led to a friendship. A friendship led to a show. And a show is building bridges.
Learn more about the adventure at www.heart-strong.org
https://www.artvanprogram.org/