A Denver art exhibit is continuing a recent tradition by showcasing the work of incarcerated artists from jails and correctional facilities throughout Colorado.

Unchained Voices, around since 2015, displays artwork by in-custody inmates from around Colorado. Becoming a nonprofit in 2024, the organization’s committee is comprised of community members, forensic social workers, attorneys, arts and criminal justice reform advocates.

On Sunday, committee members with Unchained Voices, at the RedLine Contemporary Art Center, held a reception and panel to kick off an art exhibit featuring the work of incarcerated artists.

“Being able to provide a space allows us as a society to start the conversation and bring awareness to a population that is just kind of shoved off to the side … but they are still so much a part of our community,” Unchained Voices Co-President Tess Neel told The Denver Gazette before the panel.

Incarcerated artists’ artwork at the RedLine Contemporary Art Center is on exhibit and available for purchase until Oct. 12. Art at the exhibit includes paintings, 3-D installations and drawings. Some of the art illustrates challenges inmates face behind prison walls.

Small amounts of proceeds are directed to Unchained Voices to continue its work, while the rest is sent to the artist, in accordance with policies set by the respective jail or correctional center.

Neel described Unchained Voices as an “empowering avenue” that helps people “share their thoughts and feelings on whatever they want to portray.”

During Sunday’s panel, two inmates spoke remotely from The Beacon at Skyline Correctional Center, located south of Colorado Springs.

“Creating spaces that step outside the cultural norms of correctional life where we want to be creative, want to be seen for, are really what the hard work is,” one incarcerated artist panelist said.

“As my practice has evolved I’ve become more forgiving of myself for my mistakes,” another incarcerated artist said.

Due to privacy concerns, correctional facility officials didn’t share the names of those who spoke Sunday.

JoyBelle Phelan, an Unchained Voices’ co-president, asked the artists pre-determined questions in the 45-minute panel.

Phelan shared her story of incarceration.

“When I was incarcerated, I felt thrown away. I felt like nobody cared, like I didn’t matter,” she said. “I made choices that led to my being incarcerated, like many, many people do … we’re now in a space where they know they’re not forgotten.”

Unchained Voices, Phelan added, “is a validation for the people who are in the show … that their stuff is out in the world.”