Walk Up Wednesdays: Artist Talk + Performance

Glass House is a poetic performance examining the corrosive nature of mass incarceration, the cultural impact of families and reconciliation. Inspired by years of correspondence between artist de'Angelo Dia and Kenneth E. Foster, whose life was spared on death row and is now currently serving life in prison.

This collection of poetry, political and pop cultural quotes, letters and satirical/ poetic commentary, explores the difficulty of nurturing community from behind bars, social and spiritual isolation and the trauma of death row.

Glass House is presented in three specific segments that explore:

1. The intersection of implicit bias and prison assimilation.
2. Nurturing community and cultivating family while incarcerated.
3. The essence and impact of time on reality.

This performance coincides with the work of the artists featured in the exhibition ...and justice for all. Following the performance we will have an exclusive behind-the-scenes discussion on the creation of ...and justice for all.

de’Angelo Dia is a poet, theologian and doctoral student at Union Presbyterian Seminary. Dia investigates public opinion and contemporary beliefs on cultural, social-political and theological issues through poetry, visual art and performance. He has studied art in Athens, Greece, Guadalajara, Mexico and Nairobi, Kenya. He received a Bachelor of Science in Applied Communication and Sociology from Appalachian State University, a Master of Arts in Literature from The University of North Carolina at Charlotte and a Master of Divinity from Union Presbyterian Seminary. His artistic influences include photographer Martha Cooper, ethno-gothic literature, comic books and graphic novels and neo-Appalachian art. Dia is an alumni artist-in-residence of the McColl Center for Art + Innovation, the Virginia Center for the Creative Arts, the Harvey B. Gantt Center for African American Arts + Culture (Artist Roundtable) and a Cave Canem Fellow. He is also a member of the Goodyear Arts collective.