Laurie Jo Reynolds
Chicago, IL
Laurie Jo Reynolds is an artist, policy advocate and researcher who has dedicated two decades of work to addressing negative representations of people in prison. Her work strategically engages with government systems, with the goal of concrete political change. For the past eight years Reynolds has focused on Tamms Correctional Center, the notorious supermax prison in southern Illinois designed for sensory deprivation. In 2007, she collaborated with former and current Tamms prisoners, their families, and other artists to launch Tamms Year Ten, a volunteer grassroots legislative campaign seeking to reform or close the prison. Due in part to their relentless efforts, Tamms supermax was shuttered on January 4th, 2013 by Governor Pat Quinn. As a 2010 Soros Justice Fellow, Reynolds researched and advocated for best practices to stop sexual abuse and reduce crime recidivism. In 2014, she and her cat Leon had a residency at the Museum of Arte Util at the Van Abbemuseum in the Netherlands.
The Honey Bun Comedy Hour
Laurie Jo Reynolds is an artist, policy advocate and researcher who has dedicated two decades of work to addressing negative representations of people in prison.
Artist BioDrawing on the artist’s long-standing work as an advocate for prison reform, The Honey Bun Comedy Hour is an educational series, scripted by experienced prison monitors, that will reenact real and imagined scenes from the Illinois criminal justice system. The goal is to use humor and parody to expose absurdities in the current system (sparing no one) and build enthusiasm for specific policy reforms. Performances, live and taped, will be shown at meetings, on social media, on cable access and eventually in a theatrical revue.