Solo Exhibitions

Rikers Island Residency and Exhibition
George Motchan Detention Center
Rikers Island, New York
2021-2022

Curated by Steven and William Ladd

Corrections Officer reflection:
“I feel like it gave me hope for the future and what this department can become if we all work together.”

A 2020 Architectural Digest review of our exhibition at The Invisible Dog Art Center, Brooklyn—reflecting nine years of work with people in custody at the New York City Department of Correction (DOC)—led to a surreal moment: a visit from the Commissioner of Corrections. A security team swept the street before her arrival. We watched, nervous and excited.

Commissioner Cynthia Brann, her Chief of Staff, and the Chief of Department—all women—toured the exhibition with us. Moved by the artworks and their creators’ stories, Commissioner Brann told us she’d rarely met people not employed by the DOC who had devoted themselves so deeply to those on inside. She offered us something extraordinary: 100% access to Rikers Island

Our vision was to create an on-site art residency and exhibition space. We launched a studio inside one of the facilities on the Island, presenting collaborative masterworks made across a decade, along with a new series of hand-beaded portraits of people who had inspired us during our residency. We aimed to uplift morale, provide moments of beauty, and spark new ideas about hope and transformation.

People in custody would discover the space and ask, “What is this place?” Each visitor was invited to answer the question: “What one word describes your hopes for the future?”

We’ve worked with hundreds of individuals on Rikers since 2012—juvenile and adult, male, female, and transitioning—as well as with officers, staff, and DOC leadership. This residency affirmed what we’ve known since day one: this is a lifelong collaboration.

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“When it comes to incarceration, there is the “inside,” with inmates accused or convicted of crimes, and the “outside,” where the rest of us, guilty or not, live out our lives.  We experienced the inside from an outsider’s perspective. We hope to bring a ray of light into the lives of the people living inside these facilities.”

Steven and William

Acknowledgments
With deep appreciation to Cristina Grajales Gallery.

Special Thanks
Lucien Zayan and The Invisible Dog Art Center, Pierre Rougier, Cynthia Brann, Hazel Jennings, Cecilia Flaherty, Carmen Gonzalez, and Keziah Eddy.