About

Solidarity Art Collective is a mutual aid group that supports prison artists and movement art projects led by prisoners. Our role is to provide alternative opportunities to artists under the restrictions. Our mission is to provide a platform to recognize our value, uplift our artistry, and amplify our voices so we can economically support our families and communities.

Our Values

  • Creativity - This is a free space for open minds to expand.

  • Respect - Zero tolerance for undermining, destructive criticism, and abrasive attitudes.

  • Non-Discrimination - Your walk of life is your own and judgment isn’t a part of our collective ideology.

  • Anti-Racism - No room for racist practices.

How SAC Works

Our coordinating team is made up of both incarcerated artists and non-incarcerated community members in Washington state who work together, centering incarcerated leadership as much as possible. Together we plan art events across the state.

Ahead of events, participating artists mail their art pieces to the non-incarcerated team, who execute the logistics of the shows. Artists retain all the rights to their artwork; they have the option to put their pieces up for sale, and all proceeds are controlled by the artists. For more information on how this works and why economic justice is important for incarcerated artists, visit our Logistics & Financial FAQ.

SAC was founded by artists at Stafford Creek Corrections Center, but we now have artists at four different prisons in Washington. If you know an artist experiencing some form of incarceration in Washington state - whether in prison, jail, juvenile detention, immigration detention, or psychiatric institutionalization - who you think might be interested in joining SAC, learn more on how to nominate them.

Map of Washington state indicating the ten state prisons listed in the key. The yellow dots indicating where SAC artists are located are Stafford Creek, Cedar Creek, Washington Corrections Center for Women, and Washington State Penitentiary.

Sites of Incarceration

Currently, all SAC artists are incarcerated at state prisons run by the Washington Department of Corrections (DOC). Numbers highlighted in yellow denote locations where SAC artists are creating. There are many more sites of incarceration in Washington that are not DOC facilities.

Key

  1. Clallam Bay Corrections Center

  2. Olympic Corrections Center – Forks

  3. Stafford Creek Corrections Center – Aberdeen

  4. Cedar Creek Corrections Center – Littlerock

  5. Washington Corrections Center – Shelton

  6. Washington Corrections Center for Women (formerly Purdy) – Gig Harbor

  7. Monroe Corrections Center (formerly Washington State Reformatory)

  8. Coyote Ride Corrections Center

  9. Washington State Penitentiary – Walla Walla

  10. Airway Heights Corrections Center