If you are in NYC before July 13th, I highly recommend stopping by the Jesse Krimes: Corrections exhibit at the Met. It is the best exhibit I have seen in a long time — and the story behind it is amazing. And even if you don’t have the chance to see the exhibit, I highly recommend learning more about Jesse Krimes (from this post, but also the other articles link, etc…) — he is someone to know of! Long story short, Jesse was put in prison for selling drugs, and during this time, he created art with the items he has access to while in prison.
This piece, called “Purgatory” is when Jesse was in solitaire confinement for a year (awaiting trial as he could not afford bail). He created this with bars of soap and decks of cards — and put the faces of people from the paper using hair gel to create an impression on to the soap.
The scale is huge and enormous. Each card is about 20 cards glued together, with a piece cut out that housed the soap bars. He then sent these cards to his friends to keep — together there are 300 of them, and with the help of the curator of the exhibit, he places them on these shelving.
This piece, also created with newspaper tracings, is huge, and was transferred on to bed sheets while in prison.
This piece is a reflection of the larger piece — but used with pebbles from the junkyard.
The vastness of this artwork.
Incredible, even without knowing the story. And now, Jesse is a renown artist, as well as an activist for reform of the penal system and a supporter of those who have passed through it. In 2022, he founded a nonprofit, the Center for Art & Advocacy, to aid the artistic activities of former inmates.
To read more about Jesse Krimes, go here and here. And watch the documentary on him here! And if you happen to be in town on April 22nd, he is giving a talk at The Met!
