Artist Spotlight: Kirston Angell

Age: 35

Sentence Length/Time on the Inside: 19 years inside, so far. 

Where he calls home: Mocksville, North Carolina

Why he makes art: I do arts and crafts because I enjoy working with my hands and I love to give people a one of a kind gift. Think about it: When an artist creates a piece of art, that piece is totally unique in some respect. Whoever comes to own that piece has the only exact one on the planet. I find that inspiring and interesting.

How he started making art: I started drawing and painting in 2017 when I arrived at Nash Correctional and saw the masterpieces that other inmates were creating. This inspired me to take the five, twelve-week inmate-led art classes offered at Nash. I was taught by other incarcerated men who took the time to show me the various techniques required to produce wuality works in various mediums. 

What it's like being an artist in prison: The talent that lies locked away behind these walls is astonishing. There are many professional level artists in prison though most people would never know it; men and women who have been in so long that they either have no one left, or have never had anyone who would know them and share their gifts with the world. 

"Anyone can change" (Angell, 2021)

 In his own words: 

Both art and music transcend the boundaries of time and culture, and provoke a wide variety of emotion through the way each of us experience it. When an artist or musician innovates and creates something, it comes from within, and they share their inner self with the world in a unique way. I believe that the vulnerability demonstrated by the artist or musician is something we all admire and long for within our own lives and relationships. This is why I choose to create both art and music. 

I enjoy working with my hands and I love to give people a one of a kind gift. When an artist creates a piece art, that piece is totally unique and cannot be reproduced in the exact respect. Sure, one could draw it again but it wouldn't have the exact strokes or the medium in equal measure, thus it is one of a kind. Whoever comes to own that piece has the only exact one in the universe. I find that inspiring and interesting. Art also passes the time and is therapeutic in nature. There are times when a particular piece gives me problems and I can't get it to look exactly how I want it to. I am forced to develop patience as I strive to finish the piece because in some mediums, a mistake will ruin the piece. I have grown a lot as a person through the creative process and focus art demands. 

I started drawing and painting in 2017 when I arrived at Nash Correctional and saw the masterpieces that other inmates were creating. This inspired me to take the five, twelve-week, inmate-led art classes offered at Nash. I was taught by other incarcerated men who took the time to show me the various techniques required to produce quality works in various mediums. The talent that lies locked away behind these walls is astonishing. There are many professional-level artists in prison, though most people would never know it; en and women who have been in so long that they either have no one left, or have never had anyone who would know them and share their gifts with the world. This is why things like Prison Reimagined: Presidential Portrait Project, and the venues that display the talents of the incarcerated, are so important. 

I chose to do the piece you are viewing of President Biden in 2020, because he has heavily influenced our country's penal system for over fifty years, and promoted bill after bill in his continual support of mas incarceration. I believe in law and order. Our society could not function without the law and those who enforce it; however, there must be a point at which we look at what is reasonable and unreasonable when it comes to the sentencing of guilty defendants, especially if we believe that our prison system is meant to rehabilitate and then reintegrate incarcerated persons back into society. 

As I read a decade by decade overview of Biden's personal involvement and support of criminal legislation, I was surprised to see how he had changed some of his views. At one point, when Biden was asked about various criminal issues during an interview, his direct remark was Lock the SOBs up! However, Biden eventually came to recognize that our nation needs to try something different in order to deal with the fact that American literally houses 25% of the entire world's prison population. If he can change his views, so can others.

Another passion of mine, maybe even more than the creative art process, is playing guitar and writing instrumental scores. My grandma bought me a guitar when I was 11 years old. I took to it pretty quickly and I began to take lessons at a local music shop. Early on I would learn things from Ozzy, Lynyrd Skynyrd, tons of 90s artists, and then I was introduced to Metallica. When I first heard the driving rhythms of Metallica, I was blown away. I began to listen to other Metal bands and then I shifted into the 80s shredders like John Petrucci, Steve Vai, and Joe Satriani. Guitar virtuosity became a dream - a dream I have fallen drastically short of due to my incarceration and extremely limited practice time, but a dream none-the-less. 

As I seek to express myself through art and music, I want nothing more than to encourage, uplift, inspire, and move others in a positive way. The pursuit of mastery means nothing if it's done from selfish motives and ambitions rather than to push the very limits of humanity to create and be something better as a whole. I challenge YOU to use your very own gifts and talents to serve others selflessly. I also encourage you to let your voice be heard with your local legislators, congressmen, and general assembly in order to promote awareness to the need to reform and restructure current sentencing laws and the need for the prison system to integrate more rehabilitative programs so that returning citizens will become stable and productive members of society rather than returning to the same criminal lifestyle that placed then in confinement.