Good day,

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I was glad to come across one of your publications which caught my attention, and I decided to write and inform you that I am an artist who expresses his emotions through Art.

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The maximum security prison facilities across Victoria, I believe, do not see the need to rehabilitate inmates through Art therapy/programmes, for most prison staff’s mentality is that of the prisoners, totally institutionalised. Most of them do not see themselves as workers of change, but as screws who would rather obstruct inmates from reaching their full potential in life. They are obstructionists and not mentors for rehabilitation.

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I am a strong believer that any inmate, no matter their creed or background who wishes to express him or herself through Art, should be able to do so. Art in essence would provide an inmate with a mental focus, hope, confidence, tangible reward and also a sense of purpose.

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It would also help inmates to appreciate every individual day which could empower them to help their fellow inmates, kids or loved ones on the outside.

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Permit me to share briefly about my own journey;

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My first brush stroke on a canvas was in 2021 at Port Phillip Prison, which was so magical and meaningful to me and which absolutely swayed me to start believing in myself.

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It also gave me the fortitude to navigate trouble free in prison. Throughout that time till this moment, I have produced more than 300 paintings, some of which I had painted for my fellow inmates, who have also benefited from the skills that I have developed during those hard times.

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My Art embodies the tradition of Art making and each one is crafted with a strong passion to recognise those men and women who have contributed immensely in shaping our world in a more positive way. My style of painting is called Symbolic Realism. I do play around sometimes with different styles of painting such as Portraitures, Abstraction, Surrealism and Landscape.

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I would encourage your magazine to highlight more on this subject, because I am a testament to how Art could help create a different world for most of our destabilised brothers and sisters who are stuck in such a dreadful environment. It is also imperative to inform your readers that reaching smaller goals such as painting, writing songs or even reciting poetry would inspire inmates to have, not only a sense of self-worth, but also a sense of tangible rewards, self-development and progress.

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There are too many stories I have left untold in this Article. I would write a book on each situation I got myself into through the power of Art, but I will leave them for another day. My long-term goal is to continue creating Artworks and also to use it to empower all the inmates around the world, who are on the path of re-establishing themselves through Art.

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I am very much happy to help your magazine in any possible way I can, and I am pleased to answer questions from any inmate who is interested in knowing more about the practical guide to visual Art and different styles of painting. I strongly believe this is the best way I can make my own self and the entire world a better place.