Artists With Conviction Celebrates 15 Years!

Prison is a noisy place, yet at Risdon Prison, in Tasmania – nestled near bushland and close to the Risdon Brook Dam – the sounds of nature still break through. Despite the din, the calls of native birds are unmistakable. With a bird enthusiast “on the inside”, creative learning staff and a correctional officer bird expert, we’ve counted 32 bird species around the prison, including sulphur-crested cockatoos, wedge-tailed eagles, superb fairywrens, masked lapwings and Tasmanian nativehens.

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It’s fitting, then, that the theme for the 15th anniversary of the Artists with Conviction (AWC) exhibition is Jail Birds. Artists with Conviction is a creative showcase featuring artwork and writing by individuals connected to the Tasmania Prison Service (TPS), including incarcerated people, people on parole or community corrections orders and even Department of Justice staff. This year, the exhibition will be held at Good Grief Studios, an artist-run space in Hobart.

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One of the many highlights of the exhibition includes a giant knitted sculpture called The Gentle Serpent, perched on two-metre-tall knitting needles. The needles are made from sustainable Tasmanian wood by an incarcerated person in the woodwork studios at Ron Barwick Prison. This impressive creation is being developed in the men’s knitting workshop, Great Balls of Fibre (featured in About Time, June 2025), with staff members also contributing to the project.

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Another exciting piece is a “blind collaboration” between two artists – one from Mary Hutchinson Women’s Prison and the other from Ron Barwick Men’s Prison. They are collaborating on a Jail Birds themed drawing, taking turns contributing to the piece before providing it to the other artist.

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Visitors to the gallery will be able to take home printed poems written by people in prison, beautifully presented on parchment paper, and read “Tiny Books” created by artists inside, which will sit in a giant nest of leaves found in the bush nearby the prison.

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Opening night will feature a live performance of a hip-hop track recorded by local artists Hermit Kovacic and RooBoy, created in collaboration with incarcerated people through the Bars Behind Bars music program. This initiative has transformed the Risdon Prison gym into a recording studio, where participants have been taking part in writing and recording workshops.

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Paintings, drawings, sculptures and woodwork pieces made by incarcerated people will be sold during the exhibition, with all funds going directly to the artists. Artists and writers are eligible for awards judged by Tasmanian authors and members of the local arts community.

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Sharing personal stories through art takes courage. It builds confidence and a sense of achievement. We’re proud to be celebrating 15 years of Artists with Conviction, and we look forward to sharing images and stories once the exhibition wraps up at the end of November.

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Artists with Conviction runs from 8–20 November 2025 at Good Grief Studios, Hobart.

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