FROM WITHIN Is Live

The FROM WITHIN Art Show officially launched on May 21 at ReVision Energy in South Portland, Maine. The traveling show features original paintings by 5 incarcerated artists at Lawrenceville Correctional Center in Virginia. On day one, the show raised over $1,000 for ArtVan, a Maine-based mobile art therapy nonprofit. That money will allow ArtVan to bring their services into 4 neighborhoods that don’t normally have access to that kind of healing.

The show went from idea to launch in about 4 months. All 5 artists completed their paintings in roughly 4 weeks. Planning happened across prison walls, state lines, and even country lines.

FROM WITHIN is built on 3 bridges: healing through art, connection between the inside and the outside, and support for the families of people who are incarcerated. Proceeds from event sales go to ArtVan. Proceeds from the online store go back to the artists’ families, helping maintain the connections that make healing possible.

For those who can’t make it to a show in person, the FROM WITHIN online store is now live with original paintings, calendars, prints, and apparel. The next in-person show is June 5 at Orange Bike Brewing in Portland.

Read the full piece on Substack.

Learn more about the adventure at www.heart-strong.org