Love is Joy by Roman Ellis
Medium: Acrylic painting
Size: 8.5 11 6 inches
Artist statement: “I do Art because it’s my way of changing the reality around me in prison.I started painting because a guy told me I couldn’t do it and that didn’t sit well with me. So I picked up a brush and some paint and started coming up with some amazing pieces that shocked me and caught the eyes of fellow inmates and Staff; who told me that my abstract way of painting fitted me and that they wanted to buy it.
My art is Freedom, it makes me fell Frustrated, Sad and Confused at times; but it Amazes me in the end. As a Artist in prison it can be hard to get art supplies so I have to use the things at hand, old book covers, photo book pages and canvases to name a few I envision my Artwork being shared across the world; because my artwork is my passageway out of these COLD Walls of Prison.
Painting has allowed me to help my family with small day to day bills which grants me the feeling of being a supportive family member. It has allowed me to open up a online Etsy Shop REC 54, to sell my art; which I am so proud of. If I needed one word to describe my Art, it would be : MYSTIC”
Image description: A painting of a young woman with dark skin and long hair. She is wearing a yellow shirt, yellow hat and blue jeans. She has a yellow halo. The background is pink and blue.