We Amplify Voices
presents
Winner of the 2022 Columbus Makes Art Excellence Award
Our Life Stories project features two groups of women serving life or long sentences at the Ohio Reformatory for Women. The storytellers who speak on their journeys and the media crew who capture the intimate stories of their incarcerated sisters.
"Life Stories gave me my truth. It allowed me to get raw & real. Life Stories is my friend & my sister. I do not make this plural, because together, WE ARE ONE. Life Stories taught me what it looks like when you love yourself."
- A
The Storytellers
The Media crew
The storyteller group worked with Professor Michal Raizen to learn about oral histories, how to compile the list of questions for one another, and the best way to conduct the interviews with each other. The media crew worked with award winning documentarian Nikki Swift on how to properly set up lights, audio, cameras and backdrops to record their ORW sisters in these intimate interviews.
Through generous support from Warden Teri Baldauf and her staff, we were able to put this project completely in the women's hands, giving them the chance to tell their story from their perspective.
Through an array of healing-centered art projects, former Programming Director Annette Dominguez also assisted in this workshop to create a safe space among the group. Together, they were able to connect more deeply with one another and with themselves.
Stay tuned on where the Life Stories multimedia exhibit will be on display next.
This project was made possible with support from Ohio Humanities and the Greater Columbus Arts Council.
