Another Me

Our Journey

House of St Barnabus - Soho Square, London W1

Display on from 2nd May - September 2019

As a part of the Koestler Arts Mentoring Scheme this is the first show of Mentees work who have all been through the programme which provides creative Guidance for ex prisoners matching them with established artists, writers, producers and crafts people following their release. It aims to support their resettlement into the community by encouraging and empowering them to continue their arts based activities and work towards their own creative goals.

Erika is proud that her collage is being used to promote this premier exhibition of Mentee's work.

Prison Reform Trust - Womens Summit

30th April 2019

Erika was delighted to be asked to exhibit 'The Closure of Holloway' and 'The Gym Tree' at the Summit that looked at the problems that face women who have experienced the Criminal Justice System and looked at the hopes and expectations that they and society can expect moving forward, especially in the light of the closure of HMP Holloway in 2016. Erika also took this opportunity to exhibit for the first time her new 'Holloway Women's Building Game' which takes the player through the history of the prison through to its closure and the ongoing struggle to get a Women's Building built on the site to serve as a base for women who have had or are in danger of becoming involved with the Criminal Justice System as well as being a centre for the local community and an iconic and forward thinking solution to disruption that incarcerating women can do families and the public purse.

LimaZulu Gallery - Postcards from Prison

4th - 14th October 2018

Erika is really pleased to show for the first time a small cronological collection of her 1400 Postcards from Prison at LimaZulu Project Space Gallery, 15 Orion Business Park, Bermondsey SE14 5RT. The collection centers mainly on the first two thirds of her sentence at MP Holloway prior to it's closure, with a small selection from her time at HMP Send.

The exhibition also shows 'The Closure of Holloway' and 'The Gym Tree' in their full glory. Hoping to raise awareness of the future fate of the site in Islington following the closure in 2016.

The private view was really well attended and quoted by one visitor as 'The most genuine art exhibition in London right now!'

To view the exhibition while it is still on please contact Erika on 07498644247 or Carl on 07858913732

Koestler Trust  2018 Exhibition - 'I'm Still Here' 

Curated by families of people in custody this year's Koestler Trust exhibition is on at the South Bank Royal Festival Hall from 18th September until 4th November 2018.

Erika is please to announce that she has two pieces of work in this year's exhibition, Waterlow Park, drawn in Inktense pencils with lino cut details, which is inspired by the fact that one of he most notable changes in social behavior that Erika noticed upon her release was 4G. Now everyone seems to be on their phones all the time, glued to their screens dogs walk themselves! This piece sold on the opening day.

The other work that Erika has on display is 'Weekly Letter', a still life that depicts a plant (unusual to have in a prison), a couple of Strawberries (brought in by staff and a couple given to Erika, strawberries taste soooo good when you have not tasted them for a year!), a glue stick ready to affix a reused stamp taken from an incoming letter, not exactly legal, but a demonstration of the lengths that prisoners need to go to to communicate with the outside world. The main object however of the composition is the weekly letter, given to prisoners each week the  second class postage is paid for by the prison and enables prisoners with little or no money to remain in touch with loved ones on the outside.

Echos of HMP Holloway Prison - Islington Museum

Islington Museum - 245 St John Street, London EC1V 4NB is exhibiting Echos of HMP Holloway Prison until the 8th October 2018. Celebrating the Closure of the prison in June 2018 and the rich history and many issues surrounding women and the prison. Here among the exhibits Erika as a number of pieces work on display; Postcards from Prison, Erika's postcard diary of her experience is shown as a digital slideshow on an almost 3 hour looped movie, 'The Closure of HMP Holloway' A2 Print, her Plaited J-Cloth bag and three of her paintings done whilst she was residing there of her room on D4 landing, 'Prison Issue' a still life of all the prison issue foods and toiletries and one of the beautiful gardens inside the prison that used to be opened to  once a year to curious paying public.

The Exhibition is a fascinating look at the reality of what life within Holloway walls was to both the staff and the prisoners in a fair and positive narrative rather than a sensationalist look at it's most famous and notorious inmates.

The exhibition is on until 6th October 2018

Postcards from Prison - Watts Gallery Art for All Exhibition

Watts Gallery Artist's Village is currently exhibiting a small selection of Erika's Postcards from Prison at their 10th Art for All exhibition which is running alongside their exhibition of works by James Henry Pullen - Inmate, Inventor and Genius. The postcards are hung in a highly prestigious location in the main gallery alongside amazing works by Watts. There is a parallel in some of Pullen's work in that he produced a series of postcard images that documented some aspects of his extraordinary life, these being a comparable way of telling a story as Erika's Postcards from Prison. The Art for All exhibition is on until 8th July 2018, the James Henry Pullen exhibition runs until 28th October 2018.

First Impressions - Portraits from Prison

Eriks's portrait painting was selected as lead image for this exhibition collaboration between Koestler Trust and Churches Together in Westminster. Launched on 20th March 2018 at St James's Church on London's Piccadilly the exhibition until the 9th April 2018, after which it moved on to a tour Bloomsbury Central Church for a short exhibition, then to St Martins in the Fields until 10th June 2018 where Tooth Pick Lady proudly looked out from the poster at the National Portrait Gallery for the duration of the exhibition.

The Exhibition was formally opened by Johnathan Atkin as well attended by members of the Church, the Koestler Trust and the Artists families.

100 Years On - An Art Trail by Women in Prison

Erika is proud to have 9 pieces of work prepresented in Koestler Trust's Women's Art Trail

In 2018 the Koestler Trust will be displaying artwork by women in prison in key sites across the UK.

These ‘corridors of power’ will display around 100 artworks by over 50 women who have entered artwork and poetry into the 2016, 2017 and 2018 Koestler Awards.

The project will play a part in the Vote 100 celebrations which will be taking place throughout 2018 celebrating the centenary of the 1918 Representation of the People Act which granted women the right to vote.

Many suffragettes were famously imprisoned 100 years ago and this trail will shine a light on the challenges faced by women in prison in 2018, put their challenges on the agenda of policy makers and catalyse improvement in the treatment and rehabilitation of women prisoners.

Public venues will displaying work from International Women’s Day on 8th March.

Please note – many of the venues are not open to the public. Please see the leaflet to check if the venue is open to the public and check opening times directly with the venues.

www.koestlertrust.org.ukhttps://www.koestlertrust.org.uk/exhibitions/100-years-on-an-art-trail-by-women-in-prison/

Venues:

Richard Burgon MP              Guardian News and Media Head Office

Baroness Corston; House of Lords       Snape Maltings

St Georges Hall                National Justice Museum

Nelson Trust Women's Centre         School of Art Aberystwyth University

North Wales Women's Centre

2017 Koestler Exhibition 'Inside'

Curated by Antony Gormley

Erika is proud to have had some of her work exhibited at the 2017 Koestler Exhibition that was held at London's Royal Festival Hall South Bank Centre on the Spirit Level from 20th September until 15th November 2017. She had 3 exhibits on display within the show 'Inside' in which Antony Gormley has curated a collection of works from this years Koestler Trust Annual Awards entries from establishments and secure units across the country that give an insight what life is like behind bars.

Both 'Play Time' and 'Authentic Collage Cards' have sold. Some of the Postcards from Prison are available from the Recorded in Art Shop as well as additional original Authentic Collage Cards.