Jesse Krimes distinctly remembers the moment he made the decision to embrace his identity as an artist. While in solitary confinement, awaiting sentencing for non-violent drug-related charges, he had a revelation that would shape his life: he would be an artist, regardless of the circumstances.
“I made a firm decision early on that I would utilize every moment of my time [in prison]—whether I was facing five years, twenty years, or a life sentence—to contribute something positive to the world,” Krimes recently shared with ARTnews. “Everything could be taken away from me, except for my ability to create.”
Before his arrest, Krimes had obtained a BA in art from Millersville University in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, where he delved into conceptual art and experimented with various materials. Despite the challenges of accessing traditional art supplies during his six-year prison term, he continued to refine his approach.
One of his most notable installations, Purgatory (2009), was created in solitary confinement using hair gel and toothpaste to transfer images onto 292 bars of prison-issued soap. These soap bars were then embedded into carved playing cards, exploring themes such as fate and the flaws of the American justice system. This installation is a focal point of Krimes’s current exhibition, “Corrections,” at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York.
In the book Marking Time: Art in the Age of Mass Incarceration, author and curator Nicole R. Fleetwood reflects on the significance of the materials Krimes chose for Purgatory, linking them to historical themes of penitence and racial violence. At the Met, Purgatory is juxtaposed with a collection of mug shots from the 1890s, showcasing Krimes’s ability to creatively utilize available resources while conveying deeper meanings.
Krimes’s meticulous approach to materiality is further showcased in Apokaluptein:16389067 (2010–13), a massive installation composed of diaphanous prison bedsheets that he worked on for three years. Using hair gel and a spoon, he transferred images from the New York Times onto the sheets, creating a striking landscape that alludes to celestial realms.
Krimes’s use of materials from the prison yard for his installations, such as Naxos (2024), highlights his conceptual approach to art-making. By hand-wrapping pebbles with image transfers and suspending them with threads, he explores themes of individuality and uniqueness amidst structured systems. This process, which began as a meditative practice, evolved with the support of other incarcerated individuals after his release.
Overall, Jesse Krimes’s journey as an artist, shaped by his time in prison, reflects a powerful commitment to creativity and resilience in the face of adversity. Foto Hyla Skopitz / ©The Metropolitan Museum of Art
Weil er anfangs nicht wusste, ob oder wie die Kieselsteine die Grundlage eines größeren Werks bilden würden, beschrieb Krimes den Prozess als organisch und intuitiv. „Manchmal stoße ich auf ein Material oder einen Gegenstand, und ich verbinde mich auf einer tiefen Ebene damit, und ich habe keine Ahnung warum, und dann setze ich mich damit hin, bis ich herausfinde warum“, sagte er.
Sutcliffe erinnerte sich daran, wie sie die baumelnden eingewickelten Kieselsteine in Krimes‘ Studio sah und von ihrer eleganten Einfachheit beeindruckt war, sagte sie. „Sie schienen als Platzhalter für Einzelpersonen zu dienen, während sie kollektiv auf die Idee der Masseninhaftierung hinwiesen.“
Die Zwänge des Gefängnissystems dienten überraschenderweise als wichtige Quelle für kreative Einfälle für Krimes, so sehr, dass „er nach seiner Entlassung aus dem Gefängnis Schwierigkeiten hatte, Kunst zu machen, weil die restriktiven Parameter der Kunstproduktion im Inneren seine Kreativität angefeuert hatten“, sagte Fleetwood.
Aber Naxos zeigt, wie Krimes aus diesem künstlerischen Kampf hervorgegangen ist und zu seinem Glauben an die Kraft der Materialien zurückgekehrt ist, um seine Vision zu verwirklichen. „Für mich ist die Grundlage, dass egal welches Konzept ich vermitteln will oder welche Idee ich durchdenke, die Materialien dazu beitragen müssen – sie können nicht einfach willkürlich sein“, sagte er.