Art Show : Prisoner Expresso – Coffee anyone?

Like the rest of us, many prisoners start their days with a cup of coffee. Some get in it at morning chow; some make it in their cells (if they are in those prisons allowing small coffee makers in cells). Perhaps what is unique to prisoners is that some of the prisoners save part of their coffee to use in creating art.

In prisons where there is limited materials with which to work as an artist, prisoners learn how to adapt everyday things into art mediums. Prisoner Express has been receiving these works of arts for several years. Most consistently, PE receives art where coffee is used as a “wash” of color, substituting coffee for watercolor or ink. In some prisons where the prisoners construct jewelry boxes and other things out of popsicle sticks, coffee is used as a stain for the wood.

Prisoner Express has partnered with Gimme Coffee to present this coffee art.

Asking PE’s membership of 3500 prisoners throughout the United States representing every state, and about 600 prisons, prisoners have been submitting artwork for this exhibition.

In the month of January 2018, this artwork will be exhibited at Gimme Coffee at Cayuga Street, Ithaca. Later in March, the work with additional pieces will be exhibited at Gimme Coffee in Trumansburg.

Please take the opportunity to view this artwork brought to you from prison chow-halls and cells from across the United States.