Wave Farm is pleased to present this growing archive of Arts in Corrections NYS (AIC) workshops offered in DOCCS Facilities across New York State. Beginning in late 2023, AIC teaching artists conducted documentation sessions of 2D, 3D, and time-based artworks created in their workshops. Documentation shared on this website does not necessarily represent all students who participated in the workshop, nor all artworks that were produced in the workshop. As AIC workshops progress into this year, this archive will be updated with more artworks.
The development and publishing of this website would not have been possible without the energy and support of Nicholas Weist (AIC teaching artist at Sullivan and Coxsackie Correctional Facilities). Web development support was provided by Peter Berry of Supercosm. Video and audio editing was provided by Otto Ohle and Christopher Cresswell (AIC teaching artist at Mohawk Correctional Facility).
The workshop participant interviews shared on this site were created to support an evaluation of the AIC program. This Research Project followed two arts demonstration programs (2019 and 2021) facilitated by California Lawyers for the Arts (CLA). The AIC Research Project, produced as a collaboration of CLA and Wave Farm is an extension of this work for which CLA was awarded grants by the National Endowment for the Arts, the Art for Justice Fund, and the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts to support evidence-based demonstration projects in several states that included New York, Texas, and Louisiana.
To provide a more comprehensive view of the experiences of AIC participants, Wave Farm supported the inclusion of peer-to-peer interviews for each workshop. Collaborating with Researcher/Investigator Annie Reynolds, of Oral History Summer School, Wave Farm developed an introduction to Oral History-informed interview techniques and coordinated with DOCCS to facilitate Reynolds’ presence at final workshop sessions, including the use of recording devices. This approach aimed to supplement the data from previous CLA research with more detailed personal accounts.
As part of the Arts in Corrections program’s qualitative research component, the Primary Researcher/Investigator conducted an oral history workshop in each of the 10 DOCCS facilities where this program was provided, as the final session of each 12-week arts class. Each 2-3 hour workshop included a brief introduction to oral history theory and practice, technical recorder training, and time for participants to interview each other and record their conversations.
Recorded interviews shared on this website do not necessarily represent all students who participated in the workshop, nor all interviews that were recorded in the workshop.