Shoulder + Handbags – Cell Solace

Purse of Peace

Twaters — Sun, 30 Dec 2018 05:46:34 +0000

Anon.

Purse of Peace, 1960’s

Woven cigarette packaging

Nevada State Prison, Carson City, Nevada

Peace is a multicolored tote bag with a red lining and working zipper, made with forgotten brands such as Chesterfields, Larks, Viceroy and many others. This piece was made to standout.

The Nevada Territorial Legislature established the Nevada State Prison or “NSP” in 1862 in Carson City, NV. In 1903 the prison became the states sole facility to carry out all executions by lynching. And 7 years later the state pass legislation that gave death row inmates the choice of how
they would like be executed. The choices where death by a firing squad or lynching, until 1921, when they introduced the gas chamber.

The Nevada State prison closed in 2012 however all of the states executions were still carried out in the prison’s perfected gas chamber until 2016.

Michele

Twaters — Sun, 30 Dec 2018 04:08:22 +0000

Herman Wallace

Michele, 1971

Woven cigarette packaging

Louisiana State Penitentiary, Angola, Louisiana

This clutch bag is unusual in that it bears a woman’s name. We know nothing of her,
except that she was beloved. Wallace created the design of staggered lines by
careful orchestrating repeated fragments of the image of the camel that
appeared on packages of that brand name. He paid attention to achieving a balance between the brownish-red of the camel motif and the warm white ground on which it appears. The result is a
purse where horizontality has been dramatized. Though not evident, the purse is lined with suede.

Wallace spent 40 year in solitary confinement in a 6’ by 9’ feet cell. He was almost certainly innocent. Commonly called “Angola,” the Louisiana State Penitentiary at Angola is the largest maximum-security prison in the United States. It is widely known for its cruel, plantation-like prison farm. At the request of Franklin Graham, the caskets of Reverend Billy Graham and his wife were made at Angola, and bear the names of Richard Leggett, Paul Krolowitz and Clifford Bowman.

Presidential Pardon

Twaters — Sun, 30 Dec 2018 03:35:36 +0000

Anon.

Presidential Pardon, 1968

Woven cigarette packaging

Huntsville Prison, Huntsville, Texas

Presidential Pardon is a purse made of woven cigarette boxes covered with postage stamps bearing images of former Presidents George Washington, Dwight Eisenhower, Thomas Jefferson and Franklin D. Roosevelt. Additionally, there are also six cent stamps displaying the American flag. Simple in design, the purse has alternating bands organized by the pale colors of the stamps themselves. Each stamp came from mail delivered to the Prison and collected by the artisan-inmate.

Huntsville Prison was nicknamed “Walls Unit” because of its thick red brick walls. For its entire
history, racial tensions have been elevated at Huntsville Prison. Unfair treatment of inmates of color, whether while doing hard labor or at prison farms such as James Farm or later at Ellis Farm, essentially recreated 20th century conditions tantamount to slavery. In the summer of 1974 in what was to become America’s longest prison hostage situation, three armed inmates seized 10 prison employees and 4 other hostages at Huntsville.

Deserted Destiny

Twaters — Sun, 30 Dec 2018 02:39:31 +0000

Anon.

Deserted Destiny, 1950’s

Woven cigarette packaging

Rikers Island, Queens, New York

Deserted Destiny is artfully crafted from thousands of Camel cigarette boxes to form a pleasantly proportioned shoulder bag. Carefully chosen and subtle motifs are strategically repeated to create warm color fields that are defined by contrasting patterns of brown and white. The
overall composition is anchored by an image of the iconic signature camel visible just above an antique brass latch. Excellent design and masterful skills are evident.

Rikers Island, New York state’s largest correctional facility, counts among it most
famous inmates jazz greats Sonny Rollins, Sonny Clark and Elmo Hope whose album “Sounds of Rikers Island” is a memento. Other famous inmates included Tupac Shakur, David Berkowitz (Son of Sam), Lil Wayne, Dominique Strauss-Khan (former IMF Director) amongst many others. On a snowy day in February 1, 1957, Northeast Airlines flight *#23 crashed on the island resulting in 20 fatalities and more than 75 injuries to crew and passengers. The Warden (James Harrison) dispersed personnel and “good” inmates to assist in rescue operations, for which the inmates received reduced sentences and recognition as heroes.Shawn Powell.

Red and White

Twaters — Sun, 30 Dec 2018 02:08:48 +0000

Red and White, 1965-69

Woven cigarette packaging

Brushy Mountain State Penitentiary, Morgan County, Tennessee

Named for its palette, Red and White is created from more than 1000 Pall Mall cigarette boxes woven together into alternating red motifs set against white squares. The resulting checkerboard patterns recalls a familiar design that occurs widely throughout the rural South on table cloths in homes and cafes.

Brushy Mountain State Penitentiary opened in 1896 following the Coal Creek revolt of 1891. The revolt took place when mine owners attempted to replace employees with convict labor leased through the Tennessee Prison system. Miners took up arms against the Coal Company and its militia. Violence ensued forcing the Governor from office and leading to the abolition of the state convict-leasing program, but not before such labor built Brushy Mountain Penitentiary itself.

On February 11, 1982, a prison guard resigned after being accused of smuggling an
automatic pistol into the prison and giving it to Aryan brotherhood gang
members who used it to unload a hail of gunfire on a group of unsuspecting
black Inmates.

The F.D.R. Express

Twaters — Sun, 30 Dec 2018 01:53:03 +0000

Anon.

The F.D.R. Express, 1967

Woven cigarette packaging

Folsom State Prison, Folsom, California

FDR Express is a two-part artifact consisting of a clutch bag and a matching belt. Together, thousands of cigarette boxes and wrapper were required as well as an equally large number of 1966 Franklin D. Roosevelt six cent postage stamps. Securing the latter was an arduous task since stamps had to be gained by bartering with other inmates. The design approach uses both muted tones and repetition that give a momentary impression of snake skin. The impression is belied when upon closer inspection, the profusion of images of President Roosevelt become clearer. Fragmented and slightly varied, the stamps reinforce the geometry of the diagonal bands that articulate the purse’s surface while simultaneously melding the many squares into a visual whole.

Folsom State Prison, second oldest maximum-security prison in California, was built in 1880. Today, Folsom is home to 1,820 inmates, including Charles Manson, Suge Knight and the late Rick James.

That Girl

Twaters — Sun, 30 Dec 2018 01:42:13 +0000

Anon.

That Girl, mid-1960s

Woven cigarette boxes

James River Correctional Center, State Farm, Virginia

That Girl is a fold-flap purse rendered in warm, earth tones that evoke the look of tortoise shells and ivory. Its designer used double-borders to establish wider complementary fields that make deft use of a closely related palette with tonal variations. By freeing the double-borders that edge the purse of identifiable references, the lines become abstract linear features of its overall design. The same approach is encountered in the broad areas that abut the borders. A central field in the design, by contrast, make repeated use of the image of image palm trees. The thoughtful use of abstract and concrete elements combined with the careful balance of colors lends the purse a wonderful sophistication.

The James River Correctional Center was built in 1896 and became fully operational in 1913. It was a medium-security facility housing just over 450 men. Inmates at James River made brick in a foundry located within the premises. Its campus was noted for its handsome clock tower. By report of prisoners and staff, the prison was haunted by a headless ghost. In 1969, major damage was caused by Hurricane Camille, and in 2011, the facility was closed. Today, it is a tourist attraction that is sometimes used as a Hollywood film set.

Purse-severe

Twaters — Sat, 29 Dec 2018 19:26:51 +0000

Purse-severe, 1966

Woven cigarette packaging

Louisiana State Penitentiary, Angola, Louisiana

Purse-severe is a shoulder bag distinguished for the variety of patterns used in its construction. Its essential unity derives for the consistent use of uniform squares resulting from the weave pattern. Beyond that, patterns vary widely depending on the colors used, the chosen motifs, and the irregular interplay of voids and closed surfaces.

Commonly called “Angola,” the Louisiana State Penitentiary at Angola is the largest maximum-security prison in the United States. It houses over 6,000 inmates. It is the home of the notorious electric chair dubbed “Gruesome Gertie.” Featured in the film “Monster’s Ball,” the infamous chair malfunctioned during the attempted execution of black teenager Willie Francis who was sentenced to death for the killing of Andrew Thomas in 1945. Reportedly screaming “Take it Off! Take it Off!” I can’t breathe” from behind his leather hood, Willie gained a little more time to appeal his sentence. The appeal was unsuccessful. He died in “Gruesome Gertie” in l947, and his story is told in the documentary “The Execution of Willie Francis.”

Green Backs

Twaters — Sat, 29 Dec 2018 18:53:58 +0000

Anon.

Green Backs, 1961

Salem cigarette wrappers and boxes

Indiana Women’s Prison, Indianapolis, Indiana

Green Backs is a satchel with a fold-down lid and a carrying-strap. It is woven from bands of packaging that bore the brand name “Salem.” The title refers to the green cigarette box color that is relieved only by the short gold and white borders that counterbalance partially visible word fragments within gold edged ovals.

Opened in 1873, the Indiana Women’s Prison was the country’s earliest maximum-security women’s correctional facility. It was built in response to the horrific accounts of physical and sexual abuse, rapes, and impregnations that women suffered at from male prison guards at the co-ed Indiana State Prison at Jeffersonville. Rhoda Coffin and Sarah J. Smith, both Quakers, were moved by the abuses and felt called by God to take action. They lobbied for the construction of a correctional facility for woman only.

Sarah J. Smith had been a minister and nurse during the Civil War and later became Indiana’s first women’s prison superintendent as well as the nation’s first female superintendent. She encourages programs and classes in the domestic trades and thereby established a new direction in female corrections.

The HoBo

Twaters — Sat, 29 Dec 2018 18:10:09 +0000

Anon

The HoBo,1970’s

Woven cigarette packaging

Massachusetts Correctional Institution/Cedar Junction, Walpole, Massachusetts

The Hobo is a grand shoulder bag. Created almost exclusively from Camel wrappers, it is elegantly proportioned, but even more elegantly rendered with ivory diamonds showing repeated variations of the hind quarter of the famous desert camel. In careful passages, these diamonds are counter-balanced by plain ones in the same warm, beige tones. Extending the same scheme throughout the shoulder strap, the overall impression of the bag is one of quiet repose and balance.

Widely known as “Walpole,” the Massachusetts Correctional Institution/Cedar Junction is a maximum security prison built to replace the ancient Charlestown State Prison in l955. It quickly earned a reputation as a violent, racist institution with frequent fights between black and white inmates, some resulting in deaths. It sank to its worst under the vicious warden Raymond Parelle who imposed extreme privations, even torture, on black and white prisoners. In 1973, inmates revolted and went on strike refusing to perform any of their duties until Warden Parelle was removed. They prevailed, offering a lesson in united actions.