MILWAUKEE — Confined inside the gallery walls of Milwaukee Institute of Art and Design, is a glimpse into a type of escape.
"Art Against the Odds," curated by the Portrait Society Gallery, features work by over 30 artists who have been or who are currently incarcerated.
Sarah Demerath is one of the featured artists. She found herself in the Wisconsin Prison system twice.
"Through my addiction, I just landed in detox centers, treatment centers, I was homeless, in county jails and then prison," Demerath said of her path.
The second stint in prison she described as her rock bottom. While there she started doodling on the letters she sent to family, especially to her six-year-old daughter.
"You could write a letter to a six-year-old, but I had to make it colorful. And I would make puzzles and draw games and do it that way. So it was really communication with my loved ones at first," Demerath said.
She's now been out for about five years and sober for six years.
As she began her new journey on the outside, she started researching different art forms and techniques on youtube and in the library. Her doodles eventually turned into a collection now featured at "Art Against the Odds."
The collection is abstract versions of her eyes that tell the story of her addiction.
"The circles represent my eyes at different points of my addiction. I had all these stories in this long 16-year battle with addiction, the only thing recognizable to me were my eyes at that point," Demerath said of her work.
The art throughout the gallery ranges from sketches and paintings to beaded work and knitting, as well as the art of resourcefulness.
Debra Brehmer, the owner and director of Portrait Society Gallery, described the work of one of the artists who built houses and painted landscapes to create his vision of what the world would be on the outside.
"There's oatmeal containers, food containers that he cups up and worked with. He's a painter, so on some of these he used his own paintings to make the sides of the houses and there's some gravel from the yard," Brehmer said.
A ferris wheel in the gallery is an impressive feat of engineering and is made with over 900 pieces of paper.
"One of the most fundamental ways that we can counter the disposability of incarcerated individuals is by making their full humanity very visible to the broader public," Brehmer said about the importance of the gallery.
And for Demerath, the gallery represents a fresh start and looking to the future.
"I could never have imagined getting to this point. I didn't even know if I was going to stay sober when I got out of prison. So here, having my artwork featured here, it shows progress. It resembles hope," Demerath said.
The opening night of the gallery is Jan. 19 and will run through March 11. Admission is free.
