NYC Department of Corrections Scrollathons

In 2012 Steven and William’s work with a District 75 School led to a collaboration with the NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene to bring the Scrollathon to the Robert N. Davoren Complex (RNDC) on Rikers Island. The Department felt their success with the District 75 kids, many of whom had been kicked out of other schools and in danger of institutionalization or incarceration, would translate well to those young men in RNDC. Using artmaking as a catalyst, participants are able to open up, share their stories and find common ground.

 Early experiences presented unique challenges to meet the security demands. Materials had to be smaller than four inches, pins had to be replaced with rubber bands, and certain colors had to be avoided. There were stringent rules about entering the Island, complex processes of forging alliances with corrections officers, wardens, and administrators and scheduling had to remain flexible to allow for frequent alarms and lockdowns.

With success in RNDC, Scrollathon was brought to other facilities, including the George Motchan Detention Center (GMDC) and the Rose M. Singer Center (RMSC). Next the Scrollathon paired with A Road Not Taken, a program that identifies and focuses on serving those in custody with substance abuse concerns and mental illness. Engagement with young and adult females in RMSC resulted in several works, as the reception was so positive and the women continually asked that Steven and William return. It was here that they received clearance for detainees to keep individual works, giving them a tangible reminder of the experience.

Word spread and the founder of A Road Not Taken requested that Scrollathon visit GMDC to work with the young adult males. By this time Steven and William had been cleared to distribute feedback forms, allowing them to learn more about the detainee’s feelings on the program and giving them a chance to reflect more on personal stories in relation to the exercise of creating.

2017 was a huge turning point for the program, as the brothers were able to install prints of the collaborative work Invincible in the two RMSC units that helped create it, as a tangible reminder of the experience and a colorful representation of hopes for the future. From 2017 to 2019 the program expanded to the Manhattan Detention Complex (MDC). There, Scrollathon paired with Restart Housing, as well as collaborated in the Transgender Housing Unit, a the time the only housing for transgender people in the city’s Department of Corrections.

In 2020 outside visitors were prohibited from entering the jail system, so when the artists learned those in custody had access to colored pencils, they sent packets that included a drawing of blank scrolls for participants to color, so they could still create and keep their own work of art. The packet explained how the artists use art to tell stories and encouraged participants to think of their own story that inspired the coloring and left space for them to write it out and for them to sign and date their work. On another page they responded to the prompt What one word describes incarceration for you? Responses were received from over 125 people in five different Rikers Island facilities and brought together with responses from the Artists’ outside community for the text-based collaborative artwork Jail Cell, included in the exhibition The Other Side at the Invisible Dog Art Center in the fall of 2020.

A review of The Other Side documenting nine years of service to those in custody prompted DOC leadership to tour the exhibition, listen to our stories and the stories of participants over the years. The Commissioner at the time said the Scrollathon should be a national model and green lighted an art studio from which to launch our most ambitious project with the DOC yet. 2022 will be an unfathomable opportunity to impact lives.