Reception: Drawing from the Inside - The Sketh Art and Words of Moses Pabon

Moses Pabon, a Peekskill man who overcame adversity and began drawing while in a correctional facility, will be showing his work at the Field Library during the month of March.  There will be an artist's reception from 1 pm - 3 pm.

From the Field Library:

The Field Library Gallery

is proud to present the work of Moses Pabon, a Peekskill man who overcame adversity, and began drawing and keeping a detailed journal during his passage through a correctional facility.  His sketches and words are a testimony to the redemption, liberation, and healing that art can provide, and they take us on a journey of faith and hope and ultimately, emancipation.  The show runs from March 1 until March 31, with an opening reception on Saturday, March 5 from 1-3 p.m. in the gallery.

Moses Pabon grew up in Peekskill where he excelled in sports and dabbled in drawing, eventually settling into a comfortable blue-collar job after graduation.  However, through a slew of unfortunate circumstances and bad choices, he began going down a path that would lead to turmoil and disarray.   "Slowly but surely, my life started turning into a chaotic mess," he remembers.  Wrestling with personal demons, he hit rock bottom and was arrested twice for DWI, eventually losing everything -- his marriage, job, and home.  "Emotionally, mentally, spiritually, and financially, I was bankrupt."

In March 2010, Mr. Pabon entered the Westchester County Jail, and slowly began keeping a visual and written record of his experience, sketching with the golf pencils inmates are allowed to buy from the commissary, and keeping a diary of every facet of life in jail.  "While incarcerated, I tried to be as productive as I possibly could be, and I started sketching the jail and my surroundings.  As I reflect now, drawing was very therapeutic," he explains.

In his meticulous journal, he detailed feelings, personal notes, and sketches of a different sort, and Pabon's reality became art, as he recorded at the time: "I draw things around the jail and here in my block...the inside of my cell, the exercise equipment, and certain views I have..."  Sketches such as Looking Out of My Cell Door, Lock-In, Alone on the Rec Deck, and Sundays = Chicken Night, are glimpses into the everyday monotony of jail life, a mundane existence that turned into something fruitful and dynamic through the saving grace of art.