ARTPRISONISSUE070809-11
PHOTOS BY MARY JO BOLE

     Perhaps it was luck, or perhaps it was something else in the works at the Eastern State Penitentiary, when  Mary Jo was offered doors from a demolished prison that were not being used.  She also managed to find two cells across from each other that were already equipped with electrical outlets. 

     Another intriguing part of this installation is the glowing resin toilet paper rolls in Cell 13.  “I wanted those to be there,” Mary Jo says on the audio introduction on the ESP website, “so that as soon as you walked by the cells you connected to the realm of plumbing because the hopper-style is kind of an odd shape to us.”

     It is hard to imagine what kind of experience the inmates had during that period of history.  And it is these artistic and historical exhibits that help to give us insight to all types of situations that have occurred there over the years.  In addition to Mary Jo Bole’s installation there are 8 more artists to see throughout the prison.  The installations last from April to November.
   


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