James Cranfill
“Growing up in North Carolina, the son of a single Mother with three children whose Dad went to prison when I was eight years old, I soon became aware of how art could stir emotions by seeing my Dad send art home from prison. I felt special when I would receive a piece he had created for me. I grew up knowing I wanted to share that same feeling. Today, so many years later, I find myself using art to share positivity and love. I also use my art as a metaphor to express my thoughts or symbolize my feelings about life, and especially family.”
-James Cranfill
“Mine and my Father’s paths veered apart from each other when I was three. We had zero communication up until I was 17. Once reunited, we formed an incredibly strong bond that not only still exists with his physical restraints, but continues to grow, flourish, and nurture our family unit as a whole. He has taught me how to conduct an honorable life as a man, father, and human being. My Father is someone who would do anything for his family, even if that means sitting in prison in hopes of a better future for his loved ones. This artwork symbolizes much more than his expression. It stands for the incredible journey he has endured and hopes to portray imagery of the lessons he has learned along the way. However the viewer perceives his art, we both hope that it brings about a feeling of inspiration, curiosity, and appreciation of the beauty that this gift of life has to offer us all”
Will Cranfill (son)
Robert Minton
Robert B. Minton is currently serving a life sentence after walking into a police station and confessing to crimes for which he was never a suspect. Twenty-two of his thirty plus years of incarceration have been spent in a close security prison where one has little to do but learn to survive in a violent subculture. He turned to the arts to find a degree of civility that afforded an opportunity to express himself and achieve a respite from the reality of his world. His time is divided between writing books, which he uses to live vicariously through the exploits of his characters, and painting scenes he will never again experience in life. When asked how he came to the arts as a means of relief, this is what he said:
"Watching PBS, I came across 'Painting with Bob Ross'. The picture intrigued me, a mountain set in a forest of pine trees with a pristine lake, things I hadn't seen in a great many years. That episode set me on a new path, though it wasn't so much art as it was something Bob Ross said; 'It's your world, you decide what lives in it'. Living in a stringently controlled atmosphere such as prison where brutally violent chaos could erupt spontaneously, his words offered something I did not have - control.
As a child I remembered drawing pictures that drew rare praise from my mother, so that's where I started. I found graphite agreeable because I could erase my mistakes. I read books and watched PBS all the more frequently as I taught myself to view the world through new eyes, those of an artist. Eventually I graduated to acrylics, in the beginning because I could afford them, however I quickly came to appreciate the widely versatile nature of the medium ranging from the impastos of oils, to the flowing layers of watercolors. They dried fast and could be quickly stored, important when you live in a shoebox sized cell. I taught myself to paint through trial and error and along the way discovered the truth of Bob's words, it was my world and I absolutely controlled what lived in it.
I chose to primarily paint landscapes and seascapes because they provided a window to scenes beyond the walls where I could dwell, even if only in my mind. I often use mixed media incorporating watercolors and pen and ink in many of my acrylic paintings. It may sound selfish to say, but I paint to please my eyes and hope in the end, my art pleases others as well."
Robert is now in a medium security prison and wishes everyone to know that though misdeeds can not be taken back, atonement of some degree is still possible - if you choose to make the effort. In all aspects of life, the time you are allotted is what you choose to make of it.
Thomas Lewers
I was born on March 29th 1971 in the city that is home to the Pro Football Hall of Fame. My interest in art emerged early in my childhood. Yet a lack of encouragement, proper instruction, and decent supplies kept me from exploring my true potential. That interest remained dormant in the back of my mind as I became a husband and father. These new responsibilities would take precedence over everything else, and further bury any thoughts of art. Until, that is, the day my wife and I decided to upgrade to professional grade camera equipment. I now had the ability to capture all of the precious moments of my growing children, and do it in an artistic way. Unlike when I was a child I now had people encouraging me, and decent instruction via the internet.
Just as I was looking into turning my new hobby into an actual business, terrible life altering events occurred. I awoke to find myself behind bars, locked far away from my family, and everything that I held dear. I soon learned that this would be the case forever. I would need to find a way to cope with my new life, and I would need to do it fast. There are hundreds of thousands of people in prison and every single one of them has to find a way to cope with this reality. Some of them join gangs, others use illegal substances, many turn to religion, and a number of them choose suicide. I decided to give art a try. I didn't think that my family would approve of most of the other choices.
In 2009 my journey to become an artist would begin. Not having the luxury of the Internet, or an art teacher, I would have to teach myself. I started out with some homemade art supplies, a few golf pencils and a book about drawing. When I draw I tend to draw portraits, and still life pictures. I draw portraits because I like the challenge of trying to capture the person's likeness. There are lots of subjects that you can choose to draw or paint that will give you some wiggle room, but when you are drawing someone's face, a face that they look at in the mirror everyday, you had better put the right shapes in the right places.
I added painting to the mix around 2012, and when I paint I tend to paint landscapes and still life.
I draw and paint still life pictures mainly because I am a bit nostalgic, and I guess there are a lot of things I kinda miss. For instance I will never again be able to take an orange out of a bowl of fruit, or arrange flowers in a vase. All of life's little trinkets that most people take for granted are forever out of my reach. I also paint landscapes because I view all of these places as unreachable. I have to use my imagination to visit these beautiful places that God has created. If you own one of my landscapes, you can be assured that I have left my footprints all over that scene. There could be a tent or cabin just out of sight, behind some trees or over a hill. If there is a road I could be further down it on my motorcycle.
If there is water, I might be just out of view on a sailboat or maybe cruising along on a jet ski. I can tell you there is no doubt that I'm not in that scene in either mind or spirit. For now, my journey continues. I hope in the near future to be adding new genres to what I paint, as well as higher quality art supplies as I become able to afford them.
JOSH SWETKY, Colorado
I was born in Colorado, where I spent much of my life in Denver, The Mile High City. I’m 6 feet tall and weigh 230 pounds, covered in a full, head-to-toe bodysuit of tattoos. My focus is to build a business for myself through art and tattooing. I’m dedicated, determined, passionate, ambitious, and creative. I spend my time working out, tattooing, reading, and especially drawing. My favorite styles are realism, horror, pin-ups, and black and gray. As a youth, I loved drawing comic art. Now I admire artists such as Dali, Boris Vallejo, and Paul Booth.
My expectations from life have changed over the years. Today, I want to be a better person and promote a better way of existence through the expression of art. Art gives me direction and purpose and motivates me to keep my mind in check and my monsters at bay. When asked what I want to do with my life, I have only one answer? To express myself through art.
Communicating my feelings has always been difficult for me, and art allows me to express those feelings more effectively. I strive to communicate the futuristic ideals of a utopian society with people who want to leave their anger, guilt, and chaotic pasts behind. I worked long and hard toward honing my skills, and I look forward to helping others do the same.
In my youth, I was seduced into entering the gang lifestyle. My hope today is to find a platform that enables me to warn people of the effects of gang affiliations and to encourage them to change for the better through their own skills, just as art helped me to do. I want to convince them to avoid the same mistakes that brought shame to me and have cost me dearly. To do so, I hope to expand my world by meeting people and making friends from all walks of life. I’m interested in learning about as many different cultures, lifestyles, and perspectives as possible to use that knowledge and expand my skills.
Although I’m currently inside a prison cell, I recognize my reality for what it is. Despite my life‘s up and downs, I try to keep a positive mental attitude and remain optimistic. I know with my abilities and skills, I can use art to sustain a life free of drugs and crime.
My goals for the future are to travel the country while sending positive messages to the world. I’m open to sharing my experiences and giving an insider’s perspective on prison life: Light shines from even the darkest of places.
Thanks so much for your time. I look forward to hearing from you. Any feedback on my art is always welcome.Check out my page 303illmagination on Facebook.
Christian Robinson, Ohio
Hello to those that are interested in me. My name is Christian, and I was born in 1992. I see myself as a huge nerd. I enjoy anime, comic books, and movies. I am a person who enjoys life, and my favorite motto comes from the movie Zombieland, and I try to live by it: “You gotta enjoy the little things.” If you move too fast, you miss the things that matter, so you gotta enjoy it while you can. I enjoy doing art because if one person enjoys what I do, then to me it’s always worth it in that moment. That means what I do brings them joy and that is why I have the passion I do for art.
Mark Springer
My name is Mark Boyd Springer, I'm an artist currently incarcerated at London Correctional Institution in Ohio. It was while incarcerated that I became aware of the multiple talents that lay dormant within by helping a complete stranger out of a very dangerous jailhouse relationship, observing his ability to create with his hands beautiful hand crafted wooden treasures. Wanting to give my mother a gift I delved in blindly, discovering I enjoyed working with my hands creating my own versions of a masterpiece. I started out making jewelry boxes, clocks, wooden roses, and chess boards. It was years later that I discovered my ability to paint, and the butterflies I make are a combination of both crafts. I use materials such as cardboard, construction paper, tissue paper, Elmer's glue, acrylic paints and sealers, handkerchiefs, bedsheets, canvas, paperclips, etc. Being limited, I must be creative, so I use what is available.
Being an artist while incarcerated has helped with the burden of financial stability and independence. It has opened doors of job opportunities within the prison system and in the outside world. Painting provides an escape from emotions surrounding my captivity into the work at hand. Life can be conflicting, but painting, creating, helps make sense of it all.
Michael Vandergrift, Pennsylvania
My name's Michael Vandergrift, and I'm from Pennsylvania. I'm a very open-minded and ambitious person. I'm constantly looking for ways to grow in my life and improve myself not only as an artist but as a person.
What moved me to start creating art was finally being tired of letting my loved ones down including myself because of my poor choices. I decided that it was time to devote my efforts and energy into something more positive for once. Since I've made that choice to create art, it has led me on a path that has completely changed my life in a positive way. In July of 2022, a little after I started taking on artwork seriously, I was offered to be in charge of the art program at the prison I was at. I took this as an opportunity to grow as an artist. I took the position and then recruited another artist who was more skilled than me to learn from and he's the one that has helped guide me to where I'm at today. After months of learning different mediums and teaching classes, we built the program up to be very successful and then ultimately the prison was shut down by the BOP and we were all uprooted and transferred to another prison overnight. It was a huge setback on everything we were building, not including losing a bunch of supplies and books.
I was able to obtain the instructor program of the art program again at the prison I was transferred to and am currently at and I'm restarting this process again all over. My friend and I were able to get our own "Art Therapy Program" approved through the prison to try and bring something new to the table. My friend and I help the participants brainstorm meaningful images that are tied to a specific loved one in their life and then we have them journal why they pick this image and what it means to them and the person they selected this idea for. Then we help them sketch it and paint it and then they get to send it to their loved one. We're still in the process of the first course of the class but it's been a great turn out so far. Everyone is bonding and opening up about sharing things with each other that they're not used to doing. Even the staff is liking it a lot because I, along with another inmate, took the initiative to start something on our own. It showed them that we cared and we wanted to share the feeling of when art comes into our lives at a time of need. I feel as an incarcerated individual it's my duty to right my wrongs and use my time wisely and give back to society in any way possible by reforming myself and helping anyone along my path on this journey that I'm on.
The people who influence me with my art vary. I follow so many artists and try to learn from anyone, including my daughters. They both draw and paint because of me changing course in my life and we bond over this now which is a major influence on me and an amazing thing to share with them. Influence is everywhere in any shape or form we just have to open our eyes and thoughts and look for it. I appreciate the support and everyone who enjoys my artwork. You can follow more on what I have going on on my Facebook group page: Mike Vandergrift Art Group Page...I hope everyone enjoys what I've displayed and thank you for your time.