A dollar spent on an art class is an investment that returns dividends throughout society, says prison art tutor Nora. Her students recently exhibited their art work at Auckland’s Uxbridge gallery, in a show titled ‘See What I Mean’.
Nora has been teaching in prisons for nearly 20 years, and has seen firsthand the value of art classes in re-integrating offenders into society.
She says that art teaching involves making a safe space for students where they could dare to put down their own ideas and images, without fear of criticism and rebuke.
The oval-shaped artworks reflect the ‘portal’ theme of the exhibition.
“The work is symbolic of the environment the artists are in, and how they see the world through a prison window,” says gallery curator Sarah Wright. Nora says that by learning to make a small area like the ovals as good as they can be, prisoners are taking control of a bit of their lives. She says the course, which is part of an NZQA-approved Art and Creativity diploma, “qualifies its graduates to re-enter society with confidence and to make a fresh start”.
One of the students says, “I hope that the viewer can go on their own journey and get a sense of what I’m trying to say.” The student, who has been working towards her diploma for the past three years, says art gives her a chance to voice her feelings, and “centres my soul”.
The Art and Creativity diploma is offered to prisoners through the Wellington-based Learning Connexion. The goals of the Learning Connexion are to help students build self-esteem, and establish patterns which make learning and creativity a way of life.
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