upcoming grant deadline: 05/15/2024

upcoming grant deadline: 05/15/2024

Mary DeWitt

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Dewitt bytayarishapoe40 web Mary dewitt by denise allen6 web ready Mary dewitt by andrea brown 2 51722743 maryandcyd
(1) by Tayarisha Poe (2) by Denise Allen (3) by Andrea Brown

2010 Leeway Transformation Award – $15,000

Mary is a painter who focuses on women who are serving life sentences in Pennsylvania prisons. Her intention is to bring visibility to these women, reinstate their humanity, and expose the legal injustices they have suffered as well as the harsh sentence of life without parole. She has known the individuals with whom she works since the late 1980’s and is wholeheartedly committed to fighting the censorship imposed on them and share their stories. Mary believes that women serving life sentences are among the most invisible, abused, and misunderstood people in our society. Her practice consists of taking digital photographs during the development of her painted portraits, putting the photos together in motion picture format, and accompanying them with the voices of her subjects. Text narrative is often included in these video, giving the viewer deeper insight into each woman’s crime and incarceration experience. The result is a dynamic and engaging portrait video that accomplishes more than the static, finished paintings alone can do. She hopes to expand her practice to document the work that these women have done with Canine Partners for Life, a program whereby incarcerated individuals train puppies to be service animals for people with disabilities. Mary’s goal is to inspire the viewer to reconsider the way that our culture demonizes prisoners across the board and to illuminate the lives of real women who have been affected by the state’s unique sentencing rules.

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Leeway grant?

Window of Opportunity Grant

The Window of Opportunity (WOO) grant provides financial assistance of up to $1,500 to Leeway grant and award recipients to help them take advantage of imminent, time-sensitive opportunities to support their art for social change practice. The Community Care Fund (CCF) provides financial assistance of up to $1,250 to Leeway grant and award recipients to support with immediate and essential emergency needs. [read more]

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Upcoming events
04/025:30 pm - 7:00 pm

4/2 Transformation Award (LTA) Awardee Panel + Info Session (In Person)

Have questions about the application process for the Leeway Transformation Award (LTA)?

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04/185:30 pm - 6:30 pm

4/18 Transformation Award (LTA) Info Session (Virtual)

Have questions about the application process for the Leeway Transformation Award?

[learn more]