Source: Radio New Zealand
The art medium of “acrylic paint and glitter on canvas shoe” doesn’t easily fit with the hardened stereotype of a New Zealand prisoner.
But that is what artist and prisoner Edward Newman created for the exhibition Worn Whirinaki Whare Taonga. (Like other names used in the show, Edward Newman is a pseudonym).
“In and out of the system, trying to find a better way to conduct my life. But having a colourful past doesn’t mean it’s all bad – it’s not all about the colour of your shoes,” wrote Newman, in an artist’s statement that helps frame the shoes he painted in an ombre of shimmery rainbow colours.
Artists in prisons transformed plain canvas shoes for the Worn exhibition.
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To drive that point home, the shoes are on display inside a room painted marshmallow pink, says Sharon Hall, operations director at The Learning Connexion.
“…it’s actually quite hopeful. It’s not all bleak, it’s not chains and flaming hearts, and you know that kind of stuff. It’s actually people looking towards their future, really.”
Shoes by the artist and prisoner Edward Newman.
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A surprising pattern emerged in the works: the tougher the prisoner, the softer their works tended to be, says Hall.
“We had one guy, and he was like, ‘Oh, you know, I hope people don’t think I’m going soft or something,’ …because his was really quite a gentle-looking piece.”
Shoes by the artist and prisoner Tama Anewa.
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Another pair of canvas shoes showed a more literal before and after split of one artist’s life. The right shoe was painted with a marijuana leaf, dollar sign, and handcuffs. The left shoe had the Māori flag and what looked like a marae .
“Coming from living the life of a criminal and ex-con to a proud Māori tane , rich in my culture and Māoridom . Knowing who you are helps who you want to be,” wrote the artist Tama Anewa in a statement that accompanies the shoes.
The prisoners make impressive work with the most basic of materials, Grant Barriball, creativity teacher at The Learning Connexion says.
“They have access to a limited range of materials, but what they can do with them is quite incredible sometimes.
“It’s not the most expensive materials they’re using. They’re quite cheap – student paints and brushes, for instance, but it just proves that you don’t actually need the top gear.”
Shoes by the artist and prison Henry Levine.
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All the artists were given the brief of “walking a mile in my shoes”. They were asked to reflect on what went well for them in the past, and how they might be able to add more of that into their lives in the future.
“A lot of the students have reflected on when they were kids, and I think art often takes them back to the happy place.”
But shoes also suggest forward thinking, she says.
Art is one aspect of the creative programme that prisoners do via lessons on DVD, class notes, and posting work regularly to a mentor. A key takeaway Hall hopes participants will utilise in their broader lives is the skill of self-review.
“So looking back on something you’ve made and thinking what could I do next time? What works well? Asking the questions and then doing that with everything.
“So starting to understand that you can apply that process to whatever in life. If you talk badly to someone, and [asking] how did that work out for me? What am I going to do next time?”
The marshmallow pink walls are used in the exhibition Worn to buck the stereotype of those in prison.
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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand