Sherrill Roland

The Jumpsuit Project is Sherrill Roland’s current and ongoing, performance-arts based project. It’s a continuation of the work he did for his Master’s thesis at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro; like his thesis project, he wears an orange jumpsuit to every performance.[4] In Roland’s Artist Statement for the 2020 South Arts Southern Grand Prize, he stated that his “practice addresses the complex construction of these three core identities: innocence, identity, and community; and reimagines their social and political implications in the context of the American justice system.”[7] In The Jumpsuit Project’s Project Statement, Roland also mentioned that, before he was incarcerated himself, his perceptions of prisons and those incarcerated were heavily influenced by how the media portrays criminal justice.[1] In this project, he hopes to change people’s perceptions of those imprisoned and end the stigma that surrounds the penal system.[9]

Sherrill Roland travels around the United States to share his work and start a conversation surrounding the prejudices people have about incarceration.[12] Like the performances he did for his thesis project, Roland follows the same rules he created, and has even added a few more since his work at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. Now, when hosting talks and discussions as part of his performances, Roland tapes a 7x9 rectangle onto the floor of the space.[10] This rectangle is a physical representation of the size of the jail cell Roland was in while serving time.[10] For many performances and talks, he restricts himself to staying inside the perimeter of the rectangle while wearing the orange jumpsuit, and will only talk to audience members who step into the space with him.[10] Roland will also set up “visitation booths”, where participants are able to converse with him in a more intimate and private manner. Audience members who partake in Roland’s performances in this way (via stepping into the 7x9 rectangle or by talking to Roland at the visitation booths) are taking on the role of loved ones of those incarcerated.[13] The Greensboro News & Record (a newspaper for Greensboro, North Carolina), when talking about the rules Roland follows in his performances, stated that “these rules are an inconvenience to Roland. But they are also disruptive to people trying to contact Roland. That’s the point.”[9]

The JumpsuitProjectDC was a performance that spanned two days.[14] On Wednesday, April 10, 2019, Sherrill Roland invited audience members and the public to the de La Cruz Art Gallery, at Georgetown University from 10:30am–3:30pm to both listen in on him sharing his stories as well as invite participants to converse with him and share their own perspectives and accounts.[14] On Thursday, April 11, Roland did something that he had never done for his performances before: include a six mile walk.[14] The walk started at the D.C. Central Detention Facility (where he was incarcerated) and ended at the de La Cruz Art Gallery.[14] This performance was the first time Roland had returned to Washington, D.C. since he had been discharged from probation.[10] Roland also encouraged the public to join him for one leg of the walk at the National Mall from 9:00am–10:00am.[14] Following the end of the walk, Roland performed The Jumpsuit Project in the de La Cruz Gallery in his signature taped off 7x9 rectangle.[14] After the performance, Roland had an open dialogue session with Dr. Marc Marjé Howard, Georgetown University professor of government and law and director of the Prisons and Justice Initiative.[14]

BKLYN Public Library took place at The Brooklyn Public Library in Brooklyn, New York City, New York, in 2017.[15] This performance was a three-day event that took place from Tuesday May 23- Thursday May 25.[16] In this performance Roland changed throughout the three days from talking to participants through a visitation booth he set up, to talking to audience members in a taped 7x9 rectangle.[15] During this event, participants were free to share their own experiences with Roland, who provided support and engaged in conversation with them, as well as listen to Roland's own similar experiences.[17] For many, Roland's project is a chance to self-reflect, find support, and heal.[13] His project is not only used as a means to show people that individuals who are incarcerated or who have been incarcerated are not how many stereotype them as, but also emphasizes the injustices in the criminal justice system and how it impacts those who are either in the system or have loved ones who are.[13]

Performance art is not the only type of art Sherrill Roland has produced since being released from prison. He also makes installation art, sculptures, and mixed media works.[2] Similar to The Jumpsuit Project, he uses these other mediums to draw attention to the criminal justice system in the United States.[2] In an interview with former classmate Patricia Daigle from Number: Inc (an art journal), Roland said that while in prison, he “saw some of the most creative things being made by people who did not refer to themselves as artists or what they were doing as art making… Now that I’m out of prison, I have all the resources in the world, but I still want to keep the integrity of that experience.”[4]

His mixed media series ArtforUS Issues, consist of multiple collages Roland made out of materials that were accessible in jail including paper (some of which that Roland made by stirring ramen noodle seasoning into a dye and dying Mylar), kool-aid, markers, letters from friends and family, and issues of Artforum International he was sent by his family.[18] The text overtop of these collages are only in three different colors: black, red, and blue.[18] Stories and quotes from his experiences in prison are seen in blue, inspirational quotes are in red, and biblical passages are in black.[18] The collages also picture sketches he drew in prison, which range from cartoons to an image of his grandmother, who passed while he was incarcerated.[18] These very personal collages allow the viewer to see inside Roland’s psyche during this period of time.[18]

Fig Leaf on Cell #7 is a sculptural piece at the Harvey B. Gantt Center for African-American Arts + Culture that consists of a large number 7 on a large pane of plexiglass.[6] On the glass there’s also a piece of toilet paper with sharpie text over it.[19] The piece is representative of how many inmates use water to paste toilet paper onto the window of their cell to give themselves a little bit of privacy.[6] On the piece of toilet paper are Roland’s thoughts, written with the intention of it being for his daughter’s mother. The writing provides an intimate insight on both his time in prison and how it affected his loved ones.[19]

• South Arts State Fellow and Southern Grand Prize Winner, South Arts, Atlanta, Georgia[7]
• Betsy Sykes Award Winner, Raleigh Fine Arts Society, Raleigh, North Carolina[22]

• McColl Center for Art + Innovation Residency, Charlotte, North Carolina[23]
• Fountainhead Residency, Miami, Florida.[24]
• Right to Return Fellowship, SOZE agency, New York City, New York[25]

• Post-MFA Fellow in Documentary Arts, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina[26]