30th Annual Exhibition of Artists in Michigan Prisons Opens March 17

The 30th Annual Exhibition of Artists in Michigan Prisons opens March 17 at the University of Michigan, featuring 872 works created by 613 artists incarcerated across the state.

The exhibition runs through March 31 at the Duderstadt Center Gallery on North Campus. A digital version will also be available online.

Organized by the University of Michigan’s Prison Creative Arts Project, known as PCAP, the annual exhibition has become a longstanding part of the university’s arts calendar.

To mark its 30th year, the program introduced its first Curatorial Resident. Omari Booker, a justice-system-impacted artist, met with incarcerated artists across Michigan while helping shape this year’s show.

“As the resident curator, I highlighted the creativity, consistency and process that PCAP artists exemplified,” Booker said. “Adverse circumstances are a part of the artists’ stories, but they do not define or separate their work from their contemporaries.”

The exhibition includes paintings, portraits, sculpture, fiber art and works created from found materials. Each fall, teams of volunteers, including University of Michigan students, visit correctional facilities throughout the state to review submissions and select pieces for display.

Visitors can read artist statements that accompany each piece, and an audio component will share portions of artists’ stories during the exhibition.

In addition to the gallery show, PCAP will host its New Art//New Music concert at 8 p.m. March 19 in Stamps Auditorium. University composition students will perform original works inspired by artwork featured in the exhibition.

Opening night begins at 6 p.m. March 17, when the gallery opens and artwork sales begin. A reception will follow, along with a celebration program from 7 to 8:30 p.m. The gallery will close at 9 p.m.

After opening night, gallery hours will be noon to 6 p.m. Sunday and Monday, and 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday. On March 31, the gallery will close at 5 p.m., and art pick-up will begin at that time.

All artwork in the exhibition is available for purchase. According to PCAP, artists receive the full sale price of their work, minus required taxes and fees.

More information and a full schedule of events are available at myumi.ch/61X7V.

Featured image: “Too Many Rolls” by R.C. Fisher is featured in the 30th Annual Exhibition of Artists in Michigan Prisons at the University of Michigan’s Duderstadt Center Gallery. The work is created using Black Sharpie, colored pencil and pastels.