© Evan Bissell

Artist Evan Bissell brought together a group of teens who had not known each other previously, but shared a common circumstance; they were children of men incarcerated at San Francisco County Jail.

The project, What Cannot Be Taken Away: Families and Prisons Project, spanned 9 months.

Bissell and the teens shared writings and audio to establish themes for their work. Later they would visit family in SF County Jail and take photographic portraits to work from. Eventual they mounted a show at SOMArts in San Francisco.

I am a little unsure as to the ultimate claim the students have on the final product. Evidently, they decided the elements and the design, but every piece is finished with the polished painting skills of Bissell’s brush. But of course, it wasn’t only these large portraits on view;  exploratory/experiential paintings of the students were displayed and the centre-piece of the show was an installation piece.

Despite the apparent dominance by Bissell over the final product, the intangibles of the collaborative project – including but not limited to discussion, new ideas, “healing & justice”, friendship, self esteem – far outweigh a critic’s (my) reserve.

I highly recommend you download the PDF time-line; it offers an impression of the shared politics of the project. Also the process describes the engagement between teacher and student.

PHOTOGRAPHY?

The tie in comes from a quote by Bissell, “I was unfortunately not allowed to photograph our workshops in the jail, so all of the pictures come from our meetings with the youth.”

© Evan Bissell

© Evan Bissell

© SOMArts

© Evan Bissell

© Evan Bissell

© SOMArts

© SOMArts

Image credit: Joe, by Evan Bissell, acrylic paint on board.

Image credit: Joe, by Evan Bissell, acrylic paint on board. © SOMArts

What Cannot Be Taken Away: Families and Prisons Project. Closing September 19th 12:00-2:00 at SOMArts – 934 Brannan St. in San Francisco (at 8th Street).

All images from Bissell’s WCBTA website and SOMArts Flickr.