View 20 Years of Artistic Noise Artwork
For 20 years, Artistic Noise has used art as a vehicle to amplify the voices and stories of young people impacted by the juvenile justice system. Mass incarceration is a major social justice issue of our time and we believe that art is a powerful tool to affect social change. We contribute to that change by creating safe spaces where our youth can be seen, heard, and supported on their path to adulthood. Our art projects and partnerships empower youth to demonstrate leadership skills while advocating for themselves and their community.
The selected projects below tell the story of Artistic Noise; how we began as a singular youth workshop and later developed into a multi-program organization. Through the artwork, the experiences of our youth artists are real and unmistakeable. Their compassion, perseverance, and creativity is undeniable. We are honored to have worked with so many talented individuals and continue to celebrate our young people to this day.
(Over the years, Artistic Noise has conducted over 5,000 workshops with youth and has assisted youth in producing more than 6,000 pieces of art, some of which remain in our archives, while others have been sold during our End of Year Exhibition. The selected projects below represent signature thematic pieces).
2001
Visual Autobiography Project
In 2001, Artistic Noise developed a pilot project specifically for young women in detention at the NFI Treatment Facility in Dorchester, Massachusetts. This project introduced the group to film photography and mixed media collage as a powerful form of creative expression.
During the workshop sessions, youth artists collaborated with each other by taking photographs in the facility and sharing collage material that would be included in their final artworks. Initially designed to address the instability of living in detention, the project became a record of experiences and emotions the young women were living through. What resulted was a compelling group of visual narratives that communicated the frustrations, concerns, and ambitions of each youth artist.
By working together and sharing their experiences, the young women at NFI set the foundation for what would become the mission of our organization. Artistic Noise was formed after this project, when facilitators Lauren Adelman and Francine Sherman joined with one of the participants, Minotte Romulus to continue offering art workshops to youth involved in the juvenile justice system.
2005
Banner Project
Between 2005-2010 youth at the Brooklyn Residential Center completed several banners, each 3 by 8 feet tall, which were showcased in a NYU sponsored exhibition in downtown Manhattan. The banners incorporate images that represent each young person as an individual and the group as a whole. Symbolism and metaphor are combined in these works to portray the experience of a young person involved in the New York City juvenile justice system. The artists wished to show themselves in their different environments past, present and future. The banners juxtapose their struggles within the system and the goals they have set for themselves as they leave, incorporating their dreams for the future.
2006
Sepia Stories
Sepia Stories was a collage project that took place from 2006-2009 in Artistic Noise’s community programming. The youth artists incorporated portraits, landscapes, patterns, text, art historical references and miscellaneous items to address their personal thoughts. The project allowed for great freedom in thematic exploration. Our youth artists developed the themes themselves, choosing to address issues of freedom, beauty, resilience, struggle, incarceration, suffering, and social acceptance among others.
2008
Letter Writing: Boston to New York
Exhibited at Commons Gallery, New York University
This was a collaborative project that took place between our community and detention programs in both New York and Boston. Youth artists used collage and photography to create cards that were then mailed to a youth artist in a different city. The recipient would choose a card that resonated with them and write a letter back to the card’s creator. When this project was publicly exhibited cards were available for visitors to write letters to the artists who were still incarcerated. These cards were delivered to the artists after the opening.Through art and writing these letters created a dialogue among the members of our programs and allowed the Artistic Noise community to express and respond to the voices of incarcerated teens.
2008
Public Murals at Artistic Noise
From 2008-2016 our youth artists created several public murals throughout New York City. During these projects, the group of youth artists would research and study the history of murals, looking at the works of Diego Rivera, the Chicano Mural Movement, contemporary street artists, and by taking mural walking tours in the neighborhoods we work. Each mural opportunity presented a unique site where the youth could collaborate to share their experiences and develop a narrative. Themes of community, struggle, triumph, identity , and power abound in these artworks.
2009
Linocut Portraits
This project was developed for the Dunlevy Milbank Restart GED Program to allow students to learn from German Expressionist woodblock prints while studying World War II in their GED prep classes. The youth artists studied the historical context in which the German Expressionist prints were created and how the events in the world affected the portraits created during this time period. Like the German Expressionist artists, youth discussed as a group the issues in society that affect their lives. They then created their own self-portrait prints to further explore these issues. This project was so successful that it was replicated at almost all of our community programs throughout New York City over the course of many years.
“My picture shows that being fly and having money is not everything, there is always sorrow. The message that my picture expresses is that just because someone may have everything there will always be something missing in their life. I hope that someone looking at my artwork will understand that money is not something that really makes a person happy.”
- Youth artist Royal
2009
Ubuntu Quilt
This project took place within our community and detention programs with young women in Boston. The theme of Ubuntu (I am because we are) from its inception was collaborative. The project had many stages, including finding inspiration in hair braiding, making the initial drawings of faces and hairstyles throughout time, translating these drawings to embroidery, and piecing everything together on a sewing machine. The entire process, from design to completion, lasted over two years and involved over sixty people including girls in the juvenile justice system and their friends, undergraduate and graduate students of juvenile justice from Boston College and Wheelock College, and adult mentors. The finished quilt was then donated in June 2009 to the National Center of Afro-American Artists in Roxbury, Massachusetts.
Source material for the quilt derived from drawings and paintings of ancient and contemporary African and African-American masks and heads, with a specific focus on hair and braiding. Hair braiding is a favorite weekend activity for girls in detention and relates to their sense of beauty, sisterhood, and friendship. It is also a perfect metaphor for Ubuntu – because it is not only difficult to braid one’s own hair, it is not as pleasing or enjoyable. Braiding is also one of the most ancient forms of art. Like braiding, embroidery and quilt making are historically ways women have gathered to be creative and to build community. This project brought us together for hours of work, but, more importantly, it gave us the opportunity to sit together and talk, laugh, sing, discuss life, build friendships and broaden community.
Youth artists who helped create this project: Krystal, Darlene, Jaharrie, Ashley, Dimonique, Alex, Lakeisha, Lanisha, Danniela, Tayla, Shamay, Nuishcka, Laquisha, Janessa, Debra, Nina, Nicole, Jessica, Jazzalyn, Anita, Kelly, Shatearia, Margaret, Talia, Khalia, Kamyyah, Chantel, Dasha, Jibrie, Sayyid, Myleicia, Medina, Teirra, Nicole, Tyraya, Victoria, Neffi, Jaquell, Neferteari, Jai-lah, Victoria, Jaquell, Jibrie, Kenny, Brianna
2011
Dress of Dreams
Young women at the Spectrum Detention began this project by writing a journal entry about their hopes and dreams for the future. Over the next few weeks, the youth artists collaged images and words from their original journal entries onto paper panels for each section of the dress. All of the panels were stitched together to create the final dress, which presents a collective portrait of the youth artists and their aspirations for a brighter future.
2012
The Storytelling Project
The Storytelling Project is based on the belief that tolerance, empathy and strength can be fostered through the powerful combination of story and art. This project celebrates the notion that when stories are shared openly, genuinely listened to, and reflected on through art, they can make a lasting impact on all who experience them.
Inspired by interviews and recordings from Story Corps and Radio Diaries, our youth reviewed stories and developed concepts for the work. Moved by this research, they decided to conduct interviews revolving around the driving question: How has your life been different than what you expected? Youth interviewed each other, their teachers and staff at the Bronx & Brentwood Residential Centers and our Community LINC programs, allowing for meaningful connections to emerge.
2013
It’s My Law
This altered book was made collaboratively by youth in Artistic Noise’s Bronx Art Therapy Probation Program. Artistic Noise partnered with the Bronx Family Court to engage with the Court’s public spaces through visual art created by youth with firsthand experience of waiting in the areas the artwork is exhibited.This altered book was created as a part of this project. The youth involved in Artistic Noise’s Art Therapy program, all of whom have spent a lot of time at the Bronx Family Court, took the main text used in New York State’s Family Courts, Family Law: Family Court Act, and through an in depth artistic process altered the book to create It’s My Law. It’s My Law comes entirely from the probation section of Family Law, because all the youth who contributed are on probation. Within the pages of Family Law, are the words, sentences and paragraphs, that directly affect the youth’s lives. To create this altered book, the youth were given blown-up pages of the original text and told to alter the pages using the text in any way they desired. The result of the process is powerful-- with diverse approaches and styles. The Art Therapist, Yasmine Awais, and the Teaching Artist, Alfred Planco, who co-led the project, had expectations put through the paper shredder, as the works are complex, mature, and with purpose. Each page conveys a belief, makes a statement, explores.
2014
Mask Collage
This project engaged young women at the Brentwood Residential Center in New York City. Youth artists explored the contemporary medium of collage as it intersects with the historical role of the mask. Artists investigated various collage techniques and styles, before developing their own paper mask conceptually bound to their identity. The mindfully executed masks found their completion through the photographic processes, in which artists worked together to stage, edit and produce photographs of themselves wearing their masks.
“Behind my mask I am unique. I am someone who tries to inspire others. Some people may say I am dull but I am different. Some believe dull and different are the same, but being different is okay.”
- Youth artist Beyonce
2015
When I was Nine
The Black Lives Matter movement has drawn attention to the treatment of people of color by authority, both physically and systemically. Youth artists in our Art & Entrepreneurship Program discussed the stories of Freddie Gray, Michael Brown, Eric Garner, Tamir Rice, and others. They shared perspectives on the tension between their own communities and police, and also shared personal stories of encounters with police. The group developed a story that they chose to animate. In this narrative, a youth artist recalls being nine years old and her encounter with police officers after a shooting happened in the projects where she lived. This was a collaborative piece with artists taking turns planning, drawing and photographing. Youth artists: Jackiee, Eli, Bishop, Briana, Marcus, Angel, Kasey, Lamont, Juwan.
2016
Obscured Identities
In Obscured Identities, Artistic Noise youth artists responded to The Jerome Series by artist Titus Kaphar. In his work, Kaphar painted portraits of individual African American men who were incarcerated for many years, as a way to form a collective portrait of the current American prison system which disproportionately affects men of color. His portraits are halfway obscured, as a way for the artist to comment on the lost time these men faced while incarcerated as well as on the tragedy of our society’s unwillingness to enact humane prison reform.
After learning how to draw their own likeness through a grid from a photograph and making monochromatic paintings, youth artists explored ways they could cover and remove parts of their own self-portraits as a way to reveal or conceal different parts of themselves. Instead of using Kaphar’s black tar, youth participants used black gesso on glass. In this way, similar to Kaphar, our youth artists discovered how the presence of obstructed space can evoke feelings of loss, sadness, isolation, mystery, energy, protection or change.
2016
In Response
In this project, Artistic Noise youth responded to the series, Branded, by contemporary artist Hank Willis Thomas. Thomas’s photographic series includes images of sports icons seemingly branded on the body of African Americans, as a way to decry both the history of slavery (during which time slaves were branded) and the commodification of black bodies in advertising and elsewhere. Thomas challenges his viewers to consider the many ways that corporations distort ideas of race, gender and class to sell their ideas and market their products. His work challenges viewers to consider how individual dignity is threatened and damaged through the distortions of popular culture.
Youth artists analyzed Thomas’ work and then chose an advertisement to use as the basis for their own creativity. In the process, they formed their own critiques of our media culture and formulated constructive responses.
2016
In Conversation
This project was inspired by Kendrick Lamar’s album “To Pimp a Butterfly.” In this album, Lamar weaves together fragments of interviews with Tupac and creates the impression that he and the late musician are engaged in conversation. The question-answer series on the album is a fictitious one, but uses original sources to highlight shared understandings.
Youth artists in our community program listened to the Lamar / Tupac interview, discussing and dissecting the content while brainstorming what deceased role model they would interview if given the chance. Prompted by their own questions and research, youth artists generated imagined dialogues with their deceased role models that explored similarities, shared outlooks, and life advice. The project culminated in highly detailed drawings and prints of each role model.
Youth artist Angel: “Do you think your dream came true?”
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.: “We accept infinite disappointment, but never lose infinite hope.”
2016
The Faces of St. Nick’s
This project was a partnership between residents of St. Nick’s Houses, Artistic Noise, and Community Solutions through the Mayor’s MAP Initiative. St. Nick’s is a NYC Public Housing Development directly across from Artistic Noise’s storefront space in Harlem. In this 5-month collaboration, 14 large-scale paintings were created by our youth artists. These paintings were then exhibited in the lobby of all 14 buildings of St. Nick’s Houses for 5 months. To begin the project Artistic Noise led brainstorm sessions with St. Nick’s residents and community stakeholders as to what they wanted the paintings to express and represent. The theme of community and building connections emerged. The background of these paintings were created by young children living at St. Nicks during a Saturday art workshop. The symbols found in the background relate directly to the themes chosen. Over the course of many months our youth artists collected photographs of St. Nick residents. Each painting is a composite face made of many faces of residents in each of the buildings the painting was created for. Over 100 people ages 4-80 years old were involved in this project. When the project was completed, residents of St. Nick’s and Artistic Noise youth artists paraded the paintings through St. Nicks and installed 1 painting in the lobby of each building.
2017
Identity Politics
In this project, youth artists began by examining how systems of power such as the media, government, and police misrepresent people of color. After discussing these issues, the youth artists were asked to brainstorm what they think is a more accurate representation of themselves. This resulted in words and ideas that came to represent their true identity.
Each youth artist created two panels based on their discussions; one examining the ways in which young people of color are represented in “mainstream” America and the other showing how the young people of Artistic Noise represent what they feel is their true identity.
“I see myself a someone who is a part of the world like everything else on this earth. I always remember my mistakes and go over the lessons I have learned. Each mistake that I’ve made in my past taught me something I could correct in my future in order to live in the present without any regrets.”
- Youth artist Eli
2017
Partnership with School of Visual Arts MPS Art Therapy Program
Every year since 2017, Artistic Noise has partnered with the MPS Art Therapy Department at the School of Visual Arts in New York City. Known to our youth artists as The SVA Mural Project, this partnership introduces our young people to a university setting and allows them to claim space in a new environment. Over the course of the year, faculty and students from the MPS Art Therapy department build trusting relationships with the youth artists of Artistic Noise. They assist our youth with creating the murals, occupying the same classroom every year, and hold discussions addressing underlying themes of race, power, injustice, and bias. The department also hosts community events where Artistic Noise youth artists share their stories and experiences on their terms, while educating others on their creative process. The partnership allows our youth to understand that their needs are important when historically, the system has told them otherwise.
The SVA Mural Project provides the young people of Artistic Noise with an opportunity to openly claim space and leave their mark in a reparative way. The murals created by our youth artists explore themes that are conceived from many brainstorming workshops and hours of discussions. Every year the partnership culminates in an exhibition event that is open to the public, with our youth artists giving tours and talks to visitors.
2018
Doing Time
Revolving around a conversation concerning how incarceration affects one’s perception of time, youth in our detention program designed these clocks that serve as a metaphor for their life in facility. Most agreed that time moves twice as slow at Rikers. While using their time to reflect on the past, the anxiety of uncertain futures often impedes a youth artist’s ability to be fully focused throughout these workshops. Some of the youth chose to illustrate the activities which divide their daily routines, while others colored mandala patterns in an effort to calm the mind. The bicycle wheel is a symbol of free time: spinning fast and traveling forward with friends while in control of the wheel.
2020
Advocacy Portraits
After several weeks of studying works by portraiture artist Kehinde Wiley, youth artists in our community program discussed personal narratives and the impact visual arts has in social advocacy and storytelling. This project centers around creating space to advocate for others, who may have had similar experiences in the justice system or society in general. After imagining how they would like to be visually represented in a portrait, youth were asked to select a social justice issue or person they would paint. Subjects selected were Colin Kaepernick, Meek Mill, Cyntoia Brown, and Chrystul Kizer, all of whom were involved with the justice system or fight against injustices. Two youth artists chose to highlight causes in an abstract way, such as the portrait of Lessandro “Junior” Guzman-Feliz, who was a casualty of gang violence, and the image of a hospitalized person to show inequities within our healthcare system. Highlighting wrongful incarceration, police brutality, medical neglect, and mass incarceration was very intentional by our youth.