Call for Submissions! Chained Voices

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1 Call for Submissions! Incarcerated youth and former youth Send us your artwork! We are collecting drawings, paintings, poems, lyrics, and all forms of art or our art show Chained Voices Chained Voices is a two day art show and fundraiser to benefit incarcerated youth and to help inform the public about the plight of juveniles in the criminal justice system. Submissions are accepted from anyone currently incarcerated at a juvenile detention facility or adult DOC facility for a crime committed as a juvenile. If your piece is sold, you decide how money accepted as payment will be used: to provide you or your family with needs or services, or donated to the charity of your choice. See our Submission Guidelines for more details. Chained Voices is a collaborative effort of incarcerated juveniles, The Colorado Juvenile Defender Center, and Denver based Forensic Social Workers.

2 Submission Guidelines Chained Voices We are delighted to invite you to participate in the first ever Chained Voices Art Show! Chained Voices is a collaborative effort on behalf of incarcerated juveniles, the Colorado Juvenile Defender Center (CJDC) (a Denver based nonprofit), and Denver based Forensic Social Workers. This is a two-day Art Show and fundraiser to benefit incarcerated youth and to help inform the public about the plight of juveniles in the criminal justice system. The event is called Chained Voices and submissions are accepted from any person currently incarcerated at a juvenile detention facility or adult DOC facility for a crime committed as a juvenile. There is no fee to submit your work. The show is scheduled to take place on Friday July 17 th and Saturday July 18 th at an Art Gallery in Denver s Santa Fe Art District The following are general guidelines for submission: All submissions will be evaluated on a first come or rolling basis and will be included in the show based on available space. The submission deadline is Monday June 15, 2015 Please keep in mind that any items submitted WILL NOT be returned to you if they are not used or do not sell at the show. After the show, if your art piece has not sold, you will have the option of having your piece submitted to the magazine The Beat Within for possible publication, having the piece kept by the committee for future shows/events, or having a family member or friend retrieve the piece for you. We regret we cannot return any submission to you directly. Please DO NOT include ANY information about the facts of your case in your piece or your submission form. This information is confidential between you and your attorney. All submissions will be sold to attempt to pay for a specific need of the artist. There are two purposes for the art show: (1) to sell art pieces and then provide the artist with the requested item/fulfill the specified need, and (2) to raise awareness about the needs of persons who are incarcerated for something that occurred in their youth and the costs associated with being incarcerated. All submissions must include a written explanation on the attached form of what you will use the funds for if your art piece is sold

3 Examples of ways to use money (these are only suggestions, please feel free to choose other reasons/needs): Basic needs for your family, such as diapers or formula if you have children Phone calls Art supplies Books (leisure or school) Music For another incarcerated person s needs (be specific) Gas card for family visits Donation to a charity of your choice (please include an explanation of your choice of charity) The committee will attempt to sell your art piece for your suggested price; however, if the art piece does not sell for that price but someone offers a lower price, the committed may sell the piece for a lower price that is reasonable in the judgment of the committee. The committee will also accept a higher price if offered. If your art piece sells, the committee will provide the requested item/need directly. So for example, if the request is for diapers for a child, the committee will deliver diapers to the family member caring for the child. If the request is for books for a school course, the committee will order the requested text books and have them delivered to the artist. All of the money collected for your art piece will be used toward this need; none of the funds will be kept by the committee. The committee cannot guarantee that every art piece shown at the event will sell. As stated above, if your art piece does not sell you will have the option on having the committee keep the piece to display at future events, asking the committee to submit the piece to a magazine for publication, or having a friend or family pick up the piece. Unfortunately, we cannot return unsold art work to artists at DYC or DOC facilities. All work must be original and created by the person submitting it If you have a pending case or appeal, all submissions must be cleared with your attorney or social worker to ensure no legal conflict exists. If your attorney states that displaying the piece could hurt your case, the piece will not be used in the show. All submissions must include your contact information. Your full name and contact information will not be shown at the event, we will only display your initials and the name of your facility. All materials used to create your piece must be on approved lists for your facility (Pieces that use contraband or materials that are not permitted in your facility will NOT be accepted). We accept submissions of the following kind: Poetry, Written Lyrics (original), Raps Paintings, Drawings, Sketches, etc. Handmade crafts, including jewelry, sculptures, etc. Short Stories Any other form of art sanctioned by your institution. Be creative!

4 Please, refrain from foul language, explicit lyrics or images. Make sure to consider the content of your work before submitting. Remember that your submission will likely be reviewed by your facility before it is sent. Do not use materials or include content that would get you in trouble! Questions, comments, suggestions and concerns should be submitted to your attorney or social worker. If you do not have an attorney or social worker you may write a letter to the address below. If you have an attorney or social worker you can submit your piece through them. If you do not have one you may send your submission to the address below. Before sending your art piece or bringing it with you to a visit, please talk to your social worker or attorney to determine the best way to send your piece. We do not want you to get in trouble for bringing something that is not allowed into a visit! We appreciate all your effort, dedication, and talent. We look forward to your participation. Contact information for submissions: Elise Logemann, Supervising Attorney Colorado Juvenile Defender Center 2062 Stout Street Denver, CO 80205

5 Chained Voices Submission Form Please fill out this entire form and submit it with your art piece. FULL NAME: DATE OF BIRTH: FACILITY: ATTORNEY S NAME (if you have one): SOCIAL WORKERS NAME (if you have one): DOC NUMBER (if you have one): TYPE OF ART PIECE SUBMITTED: SUGGESTED PRICE FOR ART PIECE (this can be the cost of your need or less, make it appropriate for your piece): $ CHECK ONE: It is ok for you to display my initials and the name of my facility Please do not display any of my personal information, I prefer to be anonymous. I AM SELLING THIS ART PIECE BECAUSE I NEED (see back of form for examples): *By filling out this form you agree that we can share your art piece with your social worker and/or attorney for approval, that we can display your art piece at the Chained Voices art show, and that we can display your suggested price and the reason you are selling this art piece at the art event. To protect confidentiality we will not display your full name at the event, but will use initials.

6 EXAMPLES OF STATEMENT OF NEED You can suggest that people buy your art piece to help fill any need that you or your family have due to your being incarcerated. Be creative! You can also state that you want the money paid for your piece to go to charity. Below are just some examples to give you ideas. SUGGESTED PRICE FOR ART PIECE (this can be the cost of your need or less): $120 While I am incarcerated my girlfriend has to care for my baby, who is 18 months old. The cost of diapers is high and I am not able to send her money because kids in DYC facilities have no way to work and send money home. Diapers cost about $60/month and $120 would cover two months of diapers for my son, Jeremiah. SUGGESTED PRICE FOR ART PIECE (this can be the cost of your need or less): $100 I want to continue my education. At DOC we are only allowed to do correspondence courses and this requires paying tuition and ordering books. I found a non-profit organization to pay the tuition but they do not cover the books, which cost over $600. My family cannot afford to pay for the books and I am unable to earn money while incarcerated. $100 would pay for almost 1/6 of the cost of my books. SUGGESTED PRICE FOR ART PIECE (this can be the cost of your need or less): $40 My mom is not able to visit me at Platte Valley, where I am incarcerated, because my mom can t afford gas and lives far away. If she was able to get gas she could drive to the facility and visit with me in person. It s very hard for me at the age of 15 to be away from my mother, who raised me, and not be able to see her at all while I am locked up. My mom has three other kids and works two jobs but still has a hard time paying for their needs and I can t ask her to spend money driving out to see me. $40 would buy a tank of gas for my mom which would allow her to visit me two times. SUGGESTED PRICE FOR ART PIECE (this can be the cost of your need or less): $25 I am incarcerated in an adult DOC facility for something that happened while I was a juvenile. I want to give back to the community in any way I can while I am incarcerated. Please buy my piece so the money can be donated to the non-profit Arts from Ashes. This organization organizes art classes for kids who have been through the system. I want to support this non-profit because the arts can be a way for kids to engage in healthy activities and get off the streets, and I want to help other kids like me so they don t end up in prison.