With Heart, Letter #010814 (work of art)
Artwork Info
Key Ideas
- This light box mimics the appearance of a digital clock. It is made up of layers of acrylic glass, red LED lights, and text from letters the artist wrote to a loved one while he was wrongfully imprisoned.
- Sherrill Roland is a contemporary artist from North Carolina. He creates visual and performance art that is inspired by his experiences being wrongfully incarcerated.
- Roland uses his art to spark conversations about mass incarceration and the treatment of prisoners within the American Prison system.
- Roland is best known for The Jumpsuit Project, a performance-based work that has traveled around the country.
Learn More
Sherrill Roland is an interdisciplinary artist from Asheville, North Carolina. He lives and works in the Raleigh-Durham area. He attended the University of North Carolina Greensboro (UNCG). Roland’s work explores themes of identity and trauma. He uses his work to prompt discussions about wrongful incarceration, mass incarceration, and the treatment of prisoners within the American prison system.
With Heart, Letter #010814 is part of the artist’s series of light box works. Roland uses text from letters he wrote to the mother of his daughter while he was wrongfully imprisoned. He layered the words on top of one another to blur the text, protecting the vulnerability he expressed in his letters. The light box’s soft red glow and font resemble a digital clock. There were no clocks in prison, so Roland measured time through writing. He often counted the number of pages he could write when he was allowed out of his cell.
I got exonerated and everything was wiped clean, except for the experience on me. All of the emotional and mental rollercoaster ride that I’ve been on through that. Having things taken away from me . . . new things being introduced into my life.
Sherrill Roland
Roland’s work is based on his own experiences being wrongfully incarcerated. He was exonerated in 2015. He completed the first year of his Master of Fine Arts degree at UNCG before he was sentenced. He returned to finish his degree in 2016. Roland is known for The Jumpsuit Project, a performance-based project in which he wore an orange jumpsuit every day on campus. He created rules for himself to follow while he was on campus, based on his experiences in prison. The Jumpsuit Project is a continuation of his master’s thesis. It is an ongoing, socially engaged art project that has traveled throughout the United States.
Whenever I was in that jumpsuit on campus I had restrictions as if I was locked up in Washington, D.C. So, my studio space on the top floor of the art building was my cell. The art building was my block. Anytime I was in my cell or my block I was allowed to wear orange shorts or my jumpsuit. Anytime I left my block I had to go straight to my destination.
Sherrill Roland
Additional Resources
Resources for Teachers
- Visit the artist’s website.
- Read an article about Roland’s work and inspiration.
- Watch a video about the Community Contracts project, a partnership between Roland, the NCMA, North Carolina Central University School of Law, and the artists of MacFly Fresh Printing Co.
Resources for Students
- Watch a video of Roland speaking about his work and influences.
- View another light box work by the artist.
- Watch a video of the artist speaking about his The Jumpsuit Project.
Images
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With Heart, Letter #010814