Angola

Patrick Simpsons shot the series Angola. At Angola Prison in Louisiana, model inmates or ‘trustees’ are encouraged to participate in ‘hobby craft’ as a part of their rehabilitation. Hobby craft is an arts program that involves painting, wood & leather working, taxidermy, furniture building, and many other disciplines. In many cases, they are given special workshops, tools and even private studios to work in. The goods are sold to the public at the prison’s annual rodeo and art fair. The money raised is then mainly split between inmates’ families and prison administration, with the inmates themselves receiving only a small amount to buy more materials for the next fair. A sad irony is that this rehabilitation will rarely benefit the prisoners in the outside world because 90% of them have life sentences, and will end up being laid to rest at The Farm.

All images © Patrick Simpson | Via: Photography Served