Comings and Goings, a multifaceted project by Spring 2007 Hot Shot Casey Orr, takes many different forms. First, it is a project comprised of three distinct groups of images: birds, migrant women, and prison inmates and their families. Second, it is an exhibition that was on view on the walls, both inside and outside, of Her Majesty's Prison in Leeds in 2009. Third, it is a forthcoming book to be published this summer in collaboration with Leeds City Museums, where Orr is currently the artist-in-residence.
Untitled by Casey Orr
In whichever context you view Comings and Goings, Orr makes a point about beings trapped in alien environments and how communication helps bridge barriers and connect one to the community. Birds also serve an underlying linguistic theme; as Orr writes, "Birds are linked through semantics to the other series in the work. Women are birds, prisoners are known as jail birds, and people—like birds—migrate and nest."
The inmates Orr photographed at the Leeds' prison were allowed to sit with their families during a specially arranged visit for a studio portrait that allowed cuddling, intimacy and space away from their jail cells. Each prisoner subsequently received a print of the family photograph to be hung in their cells, and the images were displayed on the prison's public-facing walls. Martin Wainwright of The Guardian wrote of the project last year, stating:
The prisoners will not see the wall - taking them outside in handcuffs and under guard was reckoned demeaning and impractical - but they have a scaled-down version now brightening up the visiting room...These are already firming up family ties, and the exhibition, entitled Comings and Goings, makes a point about that, which everyone involved echoes. Armley's inmates and their families are part of the local community too.
The act of being documented with their families in and of itself reiterates that family is not limited by physical barriers, and the public exhibition offers the prisoners hope that they can be viewed as individuals who are part of a larger network.
To see more work by Casey, hop on over to her portfolio.