“You can’t pretend in here. You’ve got to try and remove the mask and address what’s left.” – ‘B’, C Wing 

Birmingham-born artist Dean Kelland exhibits the results of his four-year residency at HMP Grendon, Buckinghamshire, Europe’s only wholly therapeutic prison.  

In 2019 Kelland started documenting his dialogues with the male prisoners and therapeutic staff in his sketchbooks that test ideas for moving image works. Between the page and the screen, Kelland carries therapeutic tropes – of ‘masking’ and ‘mirroring’ – through a series of solo and group performances set within the prison environment and community. 

The exhibition is accompanied by two publications – Notes from Grendon 1 and 2 (due for publication late May 2023) – including excerpts from Kelland’s sketchbooks and blog posts alongside artworks and letters by the prisoners. It is supported by the Marie-Louise von Motesiczky Charitable Trust.