Silver City, NM- The Miller Library held an exhibit on Thursday for the Art From Within Exhibit done by inmates from the Grant County Detention Center right in Silver City. With plenty of assistance from the city, county, and local representatives of New Mexico government, the Inmate Support Program has been able to flourish inside cell walls. Administrator for the Detention Center, Mike Carrillo, spoke about the program and just how much it has been helping inmates figure out what it is they want to do when they are back in their communities and reduce the recidivism, or re-offenses, that land them right back where they once were. “Instead of a label, start an opportunity for them to help themselves for once and change their lives.”
Cari Lemon from the Grant County Health Council also spoke on how this program had been in the works since 2012, but once they received the necessary items to get it off of the ground they have now been able to have the program going for an entire year since January of 2016.
The magnificent spectacle of inmates’ artwork was on full display for the public to admire. With work from around 30 different artists, the pieces were very intricate, yet they spoke loud messages about what these inmates are experiencing in their lives.
Desirre Hayes was among the artists who had plenty of her artwork on display, and her pieces mostly depicted religion and how she related to it with a verse and then a drawing of what that verse reminded her of.
Anthony Roybal, a former inmate, was at the event and spoke briefly on how he really appreciated what the program did for him, and he even brought out an amazing piece of a woman he recently finished that had been done with oil paint. His other works were also in the exhibit, and he put his work onto handkerchiefs, then used pen or lead pencils to draw very detailed figures that looked as if they had been done by a renowned artist.
Some of the other artists’ work at the show were Jaime Perez, Jason Rodriguez, Mason Smith, Michael Sproul, Garrett Rivas, David Osuna, Chris Amador, Jonathan Cisneros, Joseph Murillo, Frank Cadillac, Steven Maldonado, Alex Selva, Alex Sierra, Damian Martinez, Melinda Marquez, Derek Thompson, and Jessica Bridges.
The inmate artists’ pieces are available for sale and will be on display at the Miller Library until March 10.
Photos taken by Asiamarie Garcia.
