Wall City: Creative Freedom

WALL CITY A San Quentin News Publication

WINTER 2022 – 2023

Volume 5 Issue 2

Freedom CREATIVE

The power of art to transform the lives of the incarcerated

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HISTORIC MESS HALL MURALS The walls of San Quentin’s chow halls are a fantastic display of history. Begun in 1953 by Alfredo Santos and two fellow prisoners, these twelve-foot-high murals document the early days of California’s statehood all the way through the second World War and the beginning of the space age. Contrary to popular myth, the murals were not painted with coffee grounds or shoe polish; rather, prison officials only allowed the artists a single color to work with — sienna — out of fear that prisoners would dye their clothes and use them to escape.

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by Peter WALL Photos CITY 3 Jo

Departments THE VIEW

San Quentin’s legendary, historic Mess Hall murals

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EDITORIAL

Artistic expression by the incarcerated and the return on their investment

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ARTS IN CORRECTIONS: After four decades’ service, Pat Maloney’s influence on SQ’s art community left a lasting impression

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DRAMATIC ARTS

Incarcerated musicians and thespians make a spectacle of themselves

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ARTIST SPOTLIGHT: From pencil on paper to acrylic on canvas, these artists truly stand alone

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10 TOWER ART

Katya McCullough gets to the heart of the matter

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CULTURE

The Q’s AAPI population finds connection and community through the arts

OVER THE WALL Ronnie Goodman’s art lives on

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OVER THE YEARS: Generations of San Quentin artists have painted a wide breadth of diversity

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COVER: Hope, by

San Quentin artist Jorge “Junior” Ramirez (2022)

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AWAKENINGS: Kevin Robinson shares his story of hard-won redemption in graphic novel form

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WALL CITY Winter 2022 — 2023 Editor-in-Chief

Marcus Henderson

Managing Editor

Steve Brooks

Circulation

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David Ditto Rich Fernandez

Contributors

Juan M. Haines Edwin E. Chavez

Photography Layout Designer

Vincent O’Bannon Andrew Hardy

Public Information Officer

Lt. G. Berry

CDCR Information Officer II

Terri Hardy

Chief, Strategic Communications and External Affairs Advisers

Krissi Khokhobashvili

Sarah Horowitz Alastair Boone Kate McQueen Dan Fost Alissa Greenberg

Wall City magazine is produced by:

San Quentin News Wall City magazine seeks to publish long-form stories to inform people outside prison walls about the lives of incarcerated men and women.

In addition, incarcerated readers get news they can use to improve their lives and become better citizens.

Wall City informs readers to the value of providing rehabilitative services to incarcerated people. It seeks to advance social justice and public safety, which supports the public interest.

Wall City is funded entirely by the support of readers and generous grants from:

Fundraising and support efforts are provided

by Friends of San Quentin News. FoSQN is an organization sponsored by the Social Good Fund, a non-profit, charitable organization recognized per Internal Revenue Code §501(c)(3). Contributions may be tax deductible.

The coronavirus pandemic has proven the age-old adage:

Great art does indeed come from great suffering

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Artwork by Jorge “Junior” Ramirez

n this edition of Wall City magazine, we take a look at the connection between the arts and rehabilitation. We pay homage to some of the incarcerated artists who left their mark on the world. There are myriad art forms that spring forth like water from the faucet of the human soul. The therapeutic value of art can be channeled into a road map for transformation. Through the process of imagining and creating, artists take us on a journey of selfreflection. They Dante D. Jones // SQNews connect us to an agency and power, a force to help change human beings, and even change worlds.

Without art we can’t appreciate life. We can’t really know what it means. Art is a reflection of who we are and the ways in which we see the world around us. If you look at a beautiful painting, watch an ancient play, or listen to a captivating song, you cannot always explain the feelings that make you appreciate the work. Art can show us the world’s darkness. It can take the mind to beautiful places. It can instill hope in people. It can help us relax. Art can warm the coldness of a soul. Art can help us appreciate our complexities and a myriad of emotions and the struggles we go through on a day-to-day basis.

Art can build self-esteem. It can empow-

er people to have a voice in their own society. It can provoke political activism. It can change the ways in which we interact with the world. Without art, we’d exist in a world without mirrors. We would leave the world without a history. We wouldn’t be able to explore the world’s depths, or understand its deadliest sins.

These artists, many of whom are still incarcerated at San Quentin, created some of these pieces while weathering the storm of a deadly pandemic. Many of them were locked in their cages, occupying their minds with art while under Covid sickness and hearing of the deaths of their fellow incarcerated community members. Many of these artists used their art as therapy while mourning the deaths of family and friends and six million other people around the world.

A hundred years from now when historians look back on the COVID-19 pandemic, many will probably say some of the most compelling pieces of art were created during that time.

Art helps people process trauma. After a life-altering pandemic, art can be a salve for one’s mind, body, and soul. In this special edition, incarcerated people reveal themselves, their heartaches, their struggles, and their triumphs during their life inside prison. We will explore, not through their words, but through their art.

—Steve Brooks, Managing Editor

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A series of self-portraits (above) drawn by members of San Quentin’s Arts in Corrections program hangs in the gallery. The portraits are the product of classes taught by longtime volunteer Pat Maloney, a well-loved and highly respected artist who sadly passed away in 2019. Maloney

(standing, below right) found purpose in his connection with incarcerated artists, including Ben Chandler (seated). His artistic guidance and inspiration can be seen in Kevin O’Donnell’s pencil portrait of a sleeping baby (top right), the epitome of innocence.

lasting impressions

at Maloney dedicated 40 years of his life to teaching and mentoring incarcerated artists at San Quentin State Prison before his retirement in 2019.

Maloney was one of the founders of San Quentin’s Arts in Corrections program, a creative co-op sponsored by the nonprofit William James Association, a San Quentin arts benefactor since 1977.

Incarcerated artists who had the privilege of working with Maloney describe him as very caring and a great listener who liked to create art inspired by holistic aboriginal themes — mind, body and nature.

“Maloney loved his job so much that he worked for a decade without pay,” said incarcerated journalist 6

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Juan Haines, who interviewed Maloney in 2019.

Maloney regrettably passed away not long after he retired, leaving behind a legacy of imagination and originality that lives on behind these walls, especially in the Arts in Corrections program.

The program has seen many incredible artists come and go over the years, and each has left his mark in some way. Some masterpieces created by the prison’s artists have even been showcased at museums and generated great interest from Smithsonian historians.

In 2014, visitors to the notorious Alcatraz Island were able to view an exhibit displaying San Quentin artists. The exhibit was displayed from February through August of

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Images from San Quentin News photo archives

Scott McKinstry surveys the beauty and creativity of the Arts in Corrections studio from his perch on the balcony. McKinstry has been a part of Arts in Corrections for years and helped paint many of the art pieces hanging on studio walls and the murals seen around San Quentin. He also worked with Maloney for years.

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Top left: Painter Joshua Law focuses intently on a detailed painting in 2018.

Bottom left: Tommy Winfrey’s 2012 painting of Annie Oakley brings the historic markswoman and her trusty steed to life.

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Images from San Quentin News photo archives

that year. It was showcased to help break negative connotations associated with people in prison. It was an opportunity to merge the old with the new and show the soul and character of the prisoners. Curators believed it would allow Alcatraz’s visitors to connect with the incarcerated in a creative way. More events like this are said to be in the works in hopes of reviving community interest and once again showcasing drawings, paintings, theatrical, and even print works.

Positive relationships are created through Arts in Corrections, allowing people to bridge the gap between cultural and sociological differences. Art improves critical thinking skills and greatly improves the mental and physical wellbeing of people, which makes it a great rehabilitative outlet for the incarcerated.

The San Quentin prison arts exhibit was presented through a partnership with the National Park Services and the Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy. Incarcerated people created pieces to give back to the society where they caused harm, proof that it is not only the artists themselves who benefit from their ability to create, but also the communities where amends most desperately need to be made.

Pat Maloney’s Bar & Grill is a central feature of the Arts in Corrections mural created in 2019, just before Maloney’s retirement. Lead artists on the mural were Scotty McKinstry, Pat Maloney and Laura Brooks.

Top right: John Sklut’s painting of Central American art and pottery is a study in shadow and light.

Bottom right: Artist Sam Marquez uses colored pencil to create detailed shading of a bald eagle.

Lower left: Therin Hill’s 2006 wolf lives in a gilded winter world.

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A R T I S T

S P O T L I G H T

Throughout history prisoners have pursued myriad means of creative expression. Nearly two millennia ago Paul the Apostle spent his time in prison composing letters to Christians in far-off lands — letters that remain powerfully relevant in the modern world.

Among San Quentin’s incarcerated walk a number of incredibly talented artists who have found true inner freedom through independent creative expression. From charcoal sketches to acrylic on canvas to music and the performing arts, these new old masters pour their lifeblood into their creations and share them on these pages.

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Too late, Bruce Fowler learned what it meant to run aground. Now he taps into a passion within himself he never knew existed — and shares the profound lessons he picked up along the way.

Eddie Herena // San Quentin News

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ruce Fowler is a self-taught artist who embraces the power of his pencil to create realistic scenes that captivate the fascination of viewers. His keen focus on the hidden details seems fitting for someone incarcerated for more than two decades. But only by looking behind those details can the beholder perceive the message in the metaphor.

“There is time to pay attention to what’s right before you,” the artist said in an interview with SQNews Senior Editor Juan Haines.

In 2017 he drew a series featuring a small fishing trawler in good shape. The vessel is beached in calm waters, but under gloomy skies indicative of a storm either looming or recently passed. The boat’s name, Freedom, is laden with meaning for the artist. His prison number, emblazoned on the bridge from which the captain would navigate stormy waters, serves as the vessel’s call sign. Finally, Freedom is also his daughter’s name.

“It’s a double metaphor,” Fowler said. “My freedom is on the beach right now. It will take a lot of work to get that going. It’s the same with my daughter. It’s a struggle to get to my daughter, and to get my freedom in the world.”

The Freedom trilogy represents segments of the incarcerated

experience — getting “beached” puts one’s life and livelihood on hold, sometimes indefinitely, allowing the person time to look at his life choices, to make an inspection of purpose, to get an understanding of his place in the world.

Fowler says that realism is an important part of his life experience.

“I can put on canvas what I see in my head,” Fowler said. “I can physically and emotionally put myself in the picture, which is why I seldom put people in my paintings. I leave that part up to the viewer.”

Fowler says he hopes that one day incarcerated artists are more recognized in the art world.

“I see that as a real need for so many that I talk to,” Fowler said.

“The artists that I socialize with, there is an absolute necessity to be seen and heard by their art. Anything I can do to assist that brings self worth to me also.”

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ASHES

erick maciel’s canvas tells a story of redemption

rising from the

“i found that i could draw when i was in the seventh grade,” said incarcerated artist Er-

ick Maciel. “I was able to draw portraits.”

He never took any lessons or read any books; he just drew whenever he saw something he liked in pictures and magazines. He came to prison about five years ago, sentenced to 25 years to life, and through his art found the strength to keep moving forward.

In the back of his mind, he decided he was going to do the near-impossible, reform himself by pursuing all the self-help groups available for his rehabilitation.

This inspired his creation of The Phoenix, representing incarcerated people. Even behind bars, he believes prisoners can still live a life of redemption. He hopes his painting can inspire others to rise above.

“We can’t let our past dictate who we are to-

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day,” said Maciel. “I created The Phoenix to have a fire glow in its face to demonstrate determination. Nothing can stop him.”

The gray background represents the colorless existence of imprisonment, the ashes of the past that his firebird arises from in its search for freedom and the redemption of tomorrow.

Maciel believes that redemption is possible.

Because through hard work and perseverance, a person can always change his heart and way of thinking.

Maciel’s hands are full. Besides art, he is enrolled in community college correspondence courses and is working on an associate degree in sociology.

Most of all, his art is an offering to others, a way to share something of himself.

“I am doing artwork to create positive feelings for the people who see it,” he said.

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Vincent O’Bannon // San Quentin News

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ark Stanley-Bey has been creating art most of his life. He worked as an illustrator inker in Orange County before he was incarcerated. This is his first art contribution to Wall City magazine, though he previously showcased a drawing of a modified Studebaker on the back page of San Quentin News.

Stanley-Bey’s art is inspired by the “steampunk” genre, a fusion of the Victorian era and the Industrial age, where mechanical application was used.

“The reason that I chose to make all these characters African American is because of the innovations Black Americans gave to America, like the cotton gin,” said Stanley-Bey. “We also helped the automotive age by creating the signal light, and a Black person created the iron we use to keep our clothes pressed.”

Blacks are rarely portrayed as heroes or law-abiding citizens, Stanley-Bey said. The inspiration for his characters’ disabilities came from Stanley-Bey’s job working with disabled prisoners. He assists incarcerated people with disabilities in attending to their daily living needs, like picking up their food or helping them get to doctor’s appointments.

The artist displays a vivid imagination. His Agent BridgeWater (right, background) is a female Secret Service agent who is highly involved in U.S. and British foreign relations.

With her purple skirt, gold left mechanical arm and her Rambo-inspired knife, she helps maintain national security.

The two territorial marshals (left) are named Steamcar and Duster. Steamcar is in front with a purple shirt and derby hat, while Duster is the black-clad figure standing behind him like the grim reaper, their vehicles in the background.

These agents of law enforcement were given a presidential order to maintain territorial peace by lawful means.

JetAir and Zeppelin (far right) are national security agents for the Office, formerly known as the Office of Secret Services. They were given jurisdiction over America’s airspace and charged with the secret development of aero-devices.

Jet Air is wearing red and has a mechanical monocle which allows him to see like a bird from high up. He also has a gold mechanical leg to assist him with walking. Zeppelin is wearing a light green dress with a gold mechanical arm and an orange parachute device on her back. She uses a cane to aid walking.

“These characters are like my version of X-Men-inspired heroes,” said Stanley-Bey with a twinkle in his eye.

Steampunk Styling STANLEY-BEY’S POINTILLISM AND

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hen 38-year-old Edgar Zarate Martinez picks up a pencil or a paintbrush, it’s his mother’s influence that he channels into his art.

“I was raised by a single mother,” he said. “That’s why I find women to be inspirational — because of their strength and unbreakable spirits.”

The visions he commits to paper and canvas are intended not only to honor women, but to embrace the spectrum of feminine mystery. His incredible portrait Blue Lady was a message of love for his sister, a reflection of light in life’s darkest moments.

“Whenever I am stressed, I go to my art and use it as a tool for coping. It helps me to release that stress and escape from this prison,” Martinez said, hoping his art can be a positive escape for others as well.

Support the San Quentin News family of publications!

Information and knowledge are powerful tools for the advancement of social justice.

The staff and contributors of Wall City magazine and San Quentin News hope to offer a peek at the truth that lives behind prison walls.

We seek out the issues that inform communities both inside and outside of the correctional environment, and publish stories that illustrate the struggles, the achievements, and the humanity of the incarcerated.

Want more?

Check us out on social media!

Our efforts pay great dividends.

We promote literacy and education among prisoners, and offer incarcerated readers usable news that will enrich their lives. We contribute to the safety of society by emphasizing the rehabilitation of former offenders. And we give the greater public a glimpse of what life behind these walls looks like.

San Quentin News and Wall City are written and produced by the incarcerated at San Quentin State Prison. We are entirely funded by grants from charitable foundations and the generous support of readers like you!

To make a tax-deductible donation, or to learn more, visit our website: www.SanQuentinNews.com You can also send a check or money order payable to:

Tony Singh // San Quentin News

Social Good Fund/“Friends of San Quentin News,” P.O. Box 494 San Quentin, CA 94964 Donors of $50.00 or more will receive one-year subscriptions to San Quentin News, Wall City magazine and Inside SQNews.

Friends of San Quentin News is sponsored by the Social Good Fund, a §501(c)(3) non-profit organization [tax identification #46-1323531] recognized under Internal Revenue Code §432.56.215-B. Donations are tax deductible.

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true colors kevin flannigan finds therapeutic release in his watercolor wonders

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Vincent O’Bannon // San Quentin News

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he natural simplicity of life captivates the creative energies of Kevin Flannigan. He uses watercolors to set his mind at ease and create a calm, soothing reality. Nature is big with him. He painted a girl hugging a deer (right) in a forest with a purplish hue, amidst red autumn leaves. The girl seems to be part deer herself, horns protruding from her head. Flannigan has also created a stylized French cityscape (far left) in red and yellow hues. He doesn’t name the place; instead, he says, “It can be anywhere in the world you want it to be.”

Flannigan has also created an image of a dark-haired gypsy woman with colorful hat and jewels. She appears to be out of the 1930s and possibly associated with the Harlem Cotton Clubs.

There is a silent eeriness to some of Flannigan’s creations. You can see the emptiness in the cold blank stare of a devilish wolf with purple and red streaks in its hair (above, background). It evokes a hungry animal stalking its prey.

Flannigan creates not only pieces that haunt the soul, he also creates pieces that uplift it. His microphone (left) is bright and splashed with splotches of color to evoke the vibrant musical “American Idol-ish” atmosphere that music often generates.

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John Sklut’s 2008 winterbird masterpiece is a study in serenity and just one among many examples of his passion and skill in capturing winged wonders.

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Omid Mokri is an artistic phenomenon whose art was featured on the cover of Wall City magazine’s second Spanish edition. His portrait of Bob Marley captures the singer’s light and laughter.

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Chad Tobias’ photo-like and incredibly realistic pencil portrait of a beautiful young woman brought color only to her eyes.

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Darren Rhinehardt’s pencil-and-shading picture of Biggie Smalls, Jay-Z and MC Lite brings the award-winning artists to life.

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Antwan Banks’ finely detailed portrait of SQNews’ former Editor-in-Chief Richard “Bonaru” Richardson, a man always found with a smile on his face.

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SQ alumnus Diaz (first name unknown) painted this 1997 portrait of a young Black woman, the personification of quiet regality.

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Kit Paepule’s not-quite-watercolors were actually composed with stains created by adding water to powdered flavored drink mixes.

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P E R F O R M I N G

Shakespea

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on drums (background) and Rico Rogers (far right) on keyboards. Many San Quentans fondly remember the incredible guitar prowess of Chris “Colonel Crispy” Koppe (center), who sadly passed away in 2019. Sleep peacefully, old friend.

Darryl Farris (left, Joe Dumar is a woodwind foreground) digs deep wonder on sax during on the bass during a 2018 a 2019 performance in music event, with Alan Brown on guitar Joe Thurson the Catholic 22 and WALL CITY WINTER 2022 –Chapel.

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Javier Jimenez // San Quentin News

Quentin Blue was one of San Quentin’s bestknown music groups prior to the Coronavirus pandemic.

All but two members of the band’s 2019 lineup, including group founder Richie Morris (far right), have paroled or transferred.

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Raul Higgins giggin’ on the Bongos for a 2019 yard performance.

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The Spanish-language “Banda Esperanza” performs at San Quentin’s annual Day of Peace celebration in 2022.

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Native American flutist Gregory “White Eagle” Coates brings First Nations culture to the 2017 Day of Peace.

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ART IS THE WAY

By George Mesro Coles-El

A San Quentin tribute to the Bard

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Mr. Steve Drown was explosive in his role as King Richard III in Marin Shakespeare’s 2022 reprise of Richard III.

Would you bother to read this poem today

Heavy hangs the head that wears the crown, as Bruce Bowman learned in his portrayal of King Richard’s brother, King Edward, escorted by Kunta Rigmaden, playing Hastings.

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with stanzas to display

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In a pattern of stomps and sweeps

Shawl-clad “Mama” Kate Brickley gives audience members the stinkeye as Queen Margaret.

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could move or stay the world as it turns and sways?

Would throbbing drums move your feet From a time when your ancestors could not sleep Without prayers for their souls to keep?

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if no pen or paper

Darwin “Tall” Billingsley played Buckingham, the ally of Richard who turned against the king.

How would food look without connection

Braydon “Ten” Tennison plays Richmond, the young prince who challenges Richard, kills him and takes the crown.

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What album would be your selection

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Would there be murals or record charts?

to the creativity of confections?

Adriel Ramirez commands the stage as Lady Anne, wife to King Henry.

if the cover couldn’t tell you about its collection?

Rehearsals to show moving parts with messages drawn from the heart?

Vincent O’Bannon // San Quentin News

What would life be without art?

Drab and lonely, not even pasty hues.

No difference in ink used or books perused. no wonder at beauty because whimsy is excused, and spontaneity misused, is art refused.

Art is the way to see through each other’s eyes, surprised

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Eddie Herena // San Quentin News

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Eddie Herena // San Quentin News

by similarities we espy.

Art is the way we chronicle the world going by, fly reminders of times by the wayside.

Art is the way to celebrate precious lives.

Those who died are survived by those alive.

Art is the way to realize your “why” And broadcast live planet-wide to brighten the sky!

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Phoeun You // San Quentin News

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Eddie Herena // SQNews

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He had the benefit of groups, but still, it took a lot of years of soul-searching and looking back on his life to understand just how everything went so wrong...

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...to understand how being bullied as a kid could lead him to search for ways to feel powerful...

wakenings

Kevin Robinson tells the true story of his life in a graphic novel by Orlando Smith

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he desired by force, to run the streets in search of greatness...

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...to be a kingpin.

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But, of course, every king must one day fall.

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Prison was the last place he’d ever expected to end up.

Yet here he was, on the yard, watching the buses come and go, bringing new fish in and taking old fish away... Day in and day out, always the same. But somehow, he couldn’t get a lick of peace.

All he wanted was to be left alone with his memories, dreams of money and power gone by.

But he kept running into dudes he knew — or dudes who knew of him, kids who had wanted to be like him.

His reputation preceded him, and though he tried his best to fade into the woodwork, youngsters kept seeking him out...

Every bus brought a new batch of kids fresh from reception, and every one of them wanted an audience, had some crazy-ass story to tell, or just wanted to ride his coattails.

Kids barely out of high school, now doing life in prison... Drop-outs and burn-outs and bad-asses and dudes who had forsaken their own futures, much as he himself had done...

One day on the yard, he was listening to yet another in a long line of young fools, a kid who was a loose cannon, half-baked and unstable, when a light in his head went off. The kid mentioned his parents, and he recognized the name, did a little mental math, counting the years.

“I know this kid,” he thought. “I knew him when he was still in his mother’s womb, and his parents bought my wicked wares.”

He looked down at his hands in a sudden burst of clarity, he saw the domino effect of his actions. Selling drugs to a pregnant woman, who then gave birth to this kid who couldn’t help himself. The kid wasn’t a fool — he was an innocent bystander.

“Is this my legacy?” he asked himself. “Is this the destruction my hands have sewn?

Pain and misery, crime and trauma?”

Staring at those hands, once adorned with gold and ice, he thought, “What have I done?”

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Slowly but surely, he began to understand: The crimes, the violence, the destruction he’d left in his wake... All of it had led him to this. Brick by brick, crime by crime, he had walled himself in, erecting a prison of his own making all around him — and inside of him as well. There had to be a way to right these wrongs, to fill the void within.

Sad though it was, his newfound understanding brought something more... something profound... something powerful:

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...AWAKENING.

The past was another country.

The future is another world.

The struggle for redemption continues...

Story by Kevin Robinson Artwork by Orlando Smith Color by Tavaz and Arthur Yeary

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TOWER ART

REFLECTIONS

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Vincent O’Bannon // San Quentin News

he Tower Book was conceived by book artist Beth Thielen in collaboration with San Quentin artists and women at the California Rehabilitation Center. Its accordion-style pages, built to fit inside a model prison tower, feature mugshot-style images of the incarcerated, photos capturing not the person’s worst moments, but rather their greatest personal triumph: the achievement of insight.

The original inspiration comes from historical photos of convicts holding boards showing their conviction and sentence. And now?

“They’re holding boards that re-define their sentence as well as their ‘sentence of insight’ of what they’ve learned about themselves during their incarceration,” said SQ art instructor Katya McCulloch.

The plan is to make 30 towers, so that each participant can keep one and the other ones can be for exhibitions and collections in places like The Getty Museum, The Library of Congress, Stanford, Emory and Columbia colleges and other prestigious institutions.

“It’s an art project, but it brings self-reflection as part of the process,” McCullough said.

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Tony Singh // San Quentin News

o members of San Quentin’s Asian-American and Pacific Islander populations, art is not only a means of creative expression, but also a tethered connection to their community and a celebration of healing from violence.

A regular feature of the prison’s annual Day of Peace is the origami table (above), where residents of diverse backgrounds learn the ancient Japanese art of paper folding with Jun Hutamato. The Day of Peace is a San Quentin tradition going back to 2007 and takes place on the threshold between spring and summer under a brilliant sun, perfect weather for sidewalk chalk drawings (center right) and art exhibitions on the Lower Yard (bottom right).

Sonny Vazquez-Ramirez’s visions of Japanese Geisha women (below) currently hang in SQ’s Arts in Corrections gallery, bringing a colorful splash of Asian culture to the space.

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REMEMBERING RONNIE GOODMAN 30

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f one were to wake up in an animated prison world, it would be the immortalized world drawn by the late Ronnie Goodman. He drew almost every aspect of life at San Quentin, just as it was during the time he resided here.

The average citizen in the world outside would never expect to find beauty and grace within one of the world’s most notorious prisons. Yet Goodman captured various areas of San Quentin with incredible vibrancy and a powerful poignancy. His painting of the old prison hospital (below, right), built in 1883, shows its facade as viewed from the fountains of the Garden Chapel. His depiction of the Lower Yard staircase (facing page) is so realistic, even the birds seem to come alive. And his image of a prisoner facing a door slightly ajar (upper right) paints an emotional picture of solitary waiting.

Goodman was supposed to fly to New York for the September 2020 opening of a six-month exhibition featuring nine of his paintings in a multi-artist collection titled Marking Time: Art in the Age of Mass Incarceration. He had finally made it to the world stage. But like so many artists, he didn’t live to see it. He died at the age of 60, in the ragged tent he called home on the streets of San Francisco’s Mission District.

Rutgers University Professor Nicole R. Fleetwood curated the art exhibit. She became interested in Goodman’s art in the early 2000s. They were introduced through the William James Association, a nonprofit sponsor of prison arts programs throughout California. Fleetwood was particularly interested in the paintings Goodman did while serving time at San Quentin prior to his 2010 release.

Goodman always kept a paint brush nearby. He specialized in creating finely detailed depictions of street life and prison time. He was also a social justice advocate who painted scenes of homelessness, shopping carts, jazz players, and crowds of the downtrodden. Goodman donated a lot of his art to William James. He contributed to many of San Quentin’s murals, and was showcased in a documentary called Aggie, about art collector and philanthropist Agnes “Aggie” Gund, featured at the Sundance film festival in 2020.

Although poor, Goodman used his talent to raise money to fight homelessness. In 2014, he ran the San Francisco Marathon and helped raise $10,000 for Hospitality House, a homeless resource center where he refined his art skills. Much of his philanthropic nature, he said, was to pay back his societal misdeeds.

“I was out of control as a younger man, and I am deeply ashamed of the crimes I did,” he said. “My life is now about being a positive influence in life, not a negative one, creating art and showing love for my fellow human beings.”

Besides art, Goodman realized a passion for running during his time at San Quentin. He helped start San Quentin’s 1,000 Mile Running Club with Laura Bowman in 2008. He remained the fastest runner in the club for the next couple of years. Frank Rouna, the current coach of the running club, greatly loved and respected Goodman. He tried to help him through his struggles with drugs, but was unsuccessful. Rouna attended Goodman’s funeral and shared fond memories of him with family and friends.

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Photo courtesy of Frank Ruona

Talented, well-loved, and held in high regard: Ronnie Goodman left a lasting impact on the world around him. His art captured the essence of San Quentin and its residents. Following his release, he became an advocate for the homeless, continuing a legacy of giving back.

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BELOW: A hidden chamber in a shuttered section of San Quentin State Prison conceals its oldest mural, a 100-year-old depiction of Jesus of Nazareth and the twelve apostles at the Last Supper. The building housed San Quentin’s 28 female prisoners before its conversion to the prison hospital in 1933. It was shuttered in 1937. The 30-by-50-foot chamber was sealed off during retrofitting around 2007, and is now accessible only through a hatch in the roof. Over the decades, the mural deteriorated due to roof leaks and moisture, and it now sits lonely and forsaken in perpetual darkness and stagnant air. This photo was taken in 2013 by Public Information Officer Sam Robinson, who visited the mural with Tommy Winfrey (San Quentin News’ art editor at the time) to document the mural before it became forgotten by the years.

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