Wistariahurst Museum, The Saga of New-Gate
May 25 @ 12:30 pm - 1:30 pm EDT
East Granby Connecticut’s Old New-Gate Prison will be presenting while Prison Reimagined is on view. The Saga of New-Gate, hosted by Old New-Gate Prison’s Curator, Morgan Bengel will dig into the tumultuous beginnings of the prison and the experimental way our criminal justice system was established. Old New-Gate Prison & Copper Mine is recognized as our Nation’s first chartered Copper Mine (1707) and First State Prison (1773). “Those distinctions did not come without trials and tribulations..” says Bengel. “Countless prison escapes lend themselves to a dramatic story, with meaningful impact for our State and National history.” The Saga of New-Gate will be held Sunday, May 25th at 12:30pm at Wistariahurst. This event is sponsored by Old New-Gate Prison and the Holyoke Local Cultural Council.
Click here to register for the Saga of Old New-Gate
Wistariahurst welcomes an exhibit of artwork and writing by incarcerated artists critiquing the US Justice System. Prison Reimagined features a series of portraits of U.S. presidents and writing pieces that touch on peoples ‘experiences within the prison system.
The project was organized by Curator and Artistic Director, Cadell “Monty” Kivett from inside a correctional facility in North Carolina. About the project’s inception, Cadell states, “…I had an improbable idea: Let’s have incarcerated artists draw portraits of our presidents, then invite those subjects to see what we had drawn. This, I knew, if staged in proper context would make for powerful commentary on mass incarceration and criminal punishment in America.” Since the project’s inception in 2021, Prison Reimagined has grown to an exhibition featuring 23 written and 23 visual works. As the project expanded, Project Manager Janie Ritter and Outreach Coordinator Haley Bryant joined the team, helping push it forward.
The exhibition has traveled to several locations, and Wistariahurst is proud to be the next venue to showcase Prison Reimagined. The exhibit will be on view in Wistariahurst’s Great Hall, expanding the area of the museum where art installations are shown, and serving as the first installation visitors will see when they enter.
