By Mary Lackie

Mixing memories and paint, artists, of the Atlanta Federal Penitentiary recreate scenes and faces they remember from the world outside the big wall.

The paintings will be on display at the Second Annual Art Exhibit and Sale, Saturday and Sunday, Oct. 14-15 from 9 a.m. –5 p.m. in the Officers’ Training Building, one block east of the main gate in the 600 block of McDonough Blvd. Proceeds from the nonprofit show go to the inmate artists to pay for their materials.

“If you have the urge to create, whether it is poetry, art, music—it will find expression,” an artist said. The institution’s artists include a clerk, typist, fireman, instructor in the football referee training course, and the manager of the varsity softball team, “The Feds.”

“While I am working,” an inmate said, “I try to get a picture in my mind’s eye and then put it on canvas. Sometimes we are stumped for subjects.”

Wheat fields and marshland, shorelines and small-town gossips (a la Grant Wood) are not found behind the big wall. The part-time artists “search the past for subjects”, search the library for reference books, and exchange paperbacks by famous artist-teachers. To paint still-lifes, they study magazines and purchase inexpensive copies of famous paintings.

Plans are underway to improve the fine arts program at the institution. Among the 2,500 inmates, more than 100 are painting—using oils, watercolor, acrylics, pen-and-ink, crayons. Favorite artists among the men are Andrew Wyeth and Robert Wood.

“We get together at mealtime, and over a cup of coffee, we discuss our favorite artists and the techniques of composition”, an inmate said. The men filled with their own work. “To paint, you got to have soul—as the boys in music say.” Another inmate added, “And the patience for it.”

Easels and canvas are set up in the men’s quarters where they have the privilege of painting while their partners judge their progress and encourage them. “Sometimes a fellow will say, ‘Whoever heard of a black cloud?’ Once our partners see a painting lined out, they admire it. The men have a natural affinity for art appreciation,” said a long-time artist.

Paintings may take two or three days a month. An artist who prefers seascapes said, “You have to recall the vortex of the water; the crest of the waves. With subjects—portraits—you go for a certain expression.”

The challenge of the work outweighs the problem of technique. A senior artist said, “It’s wonderful therapy. The pleasure comes from seeing people enjoy a painting.”

At the art exhibit, people ‘on the outside’ will have the opportunity to enjoy the paintings at the art exhibit. Included in the show are original works and copies. The copies will be credited to the original artists. The public is invited to attend, and reminded that all sales are on a cash basis.