Confined 12

Presented by The Torch, Confined is an annual exhibition of stunning works from Indigenous artists currently in or recently released from prison.

This year's Confined 12 features an extraordinary range of paintings and three-dimensional artworks including a 2.2m high culturally carved wooden post and lintel construction and Brancusi like vertical sculptures, woven baskets, bush dyed silk scarves, decorative ceramic homewares, a model motorbike made from matchsticks and coffee stirrers, an array of shields, boomerangs, clapsticks and painted yidaki's.

With a record 350 artworks from 320 artists from 16 correctional facilities across Victoria, this collection of works is a strong visual metaphor for the over-representation of Indigenous Australians in the criminal justice system.

For the first time Confined will be at the Glen Eira Town Hall Gallery, from 13 May to 6 June, to accommodate the ever-increasing number of artists and artworks. Confined 12 can also be viewed online at The Torch website via a scrolling mosaic and a 3D virtual tour.

All works will be available for purchase from the gallery and online with 100% of the sales going to the artist. For participants, the creation and sale of their artworks is part of the rehabilitation process that helps build confidence, social capital, economic stability and pathways to reconnect with the community. By embracing program participants as artists rather than offenders, The Torch provides an avenue to change.