Residents and former residents of incarceration facilities express their lives in the art they create. The work defies stereotypes and emphasizes that we are all more than the worst act we have committed. We are whole people with loves and losses, skills, talents, ideas and gifts…and a longing to be free.

Disclaimer: Due to the current Maine DOC policy directive, we are prohibited from sharing the full names of the incarcerated people who participated in this exhibition.

Curators: Jan Collins, Olivia Hochstadt, and John Ripton

On view September 3 – October 29, 2021. Opening reception to take place during Portland’s First Friday Art Walk from 5 – 8 p.m. Gallery Hours: 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. Tuesday –Thursday, 5-8 p.m.Friday; 1-4 p.m. Saturday – Sunday. Friday through Sunday, the gallery will be staffed by impacted persons, the formerly incarcerated or their loved ones. Please feel free to ask questions.

UMVA Gallery | 516 Congress Street | Portland, Maine.

Watch a recording of the exhibition’s opening reception here: Opening Reception of Freedom & Captivity: Maine Voices Beyond Prison Walls.

Read an article by curator Olivia Hochstadt about working with one of the artists in the show.

View images from the exhibition here:

Header Image : Morty, Menagerie of Regret, Mixed Media.

Visit the Exhibition