Christie’s to Auction Property Sold to Benefit Right of Return, USA Fellowship
New York – Christie’s is proud to present a group of six artworks that will be sold to benefit the Right of Return Fellowship. Surrender Painting "Sunshine" by Rashid Johnson is the top lot of the group and will be a featured highlight of the 21st Century Evening Sale. The additional five works include mixed media artworks by Hank Willis Thomas, Mickalene Thomas, Titus Kaphar, and organization co-founders Jesse Krimes and Russell Craig, all created specifically for the sale. In total, the group is expected to achieve more than $1 million.
Co-founded in 2017 by Jesse Krimes and Russell Craig, Right of Return is the first and only national initiative dedicated to supporting and mentoring formerly incarcerated creatives. Right of Return Fellows produce work that advances criminal and racial justice and challenges the status quo. The fellowship has flourished with the generous support of the Open Philanthropy Project, the Art for Justice Fund, and the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.
“The sale of these six artworks will allow Right of Return to continue providing meaningful, sustainable support to formerly incarcerated artists, who are often overlooked in the mainstream art world,” said Krimes. “Through their critical creative practices, these artists raise awareness of and catalyze dialogue about the realities of mass incarceration. They probe and challenge the public imagination, inviting us to speculate on and endeavor towards new definitions of justice.”
Positioning artists as changemakers, the initiative prioritizes funding for new projects that address or reimagine one of the biggest moral and human rights crises of our time: the creation of an American carceral system in which approximately 2 million people are behind bars, and nearly 4 million more are on some form of state supervision. Right of Return is part of the movement to change narratives and foster conversations around policing, punishment, and the systemic racial and class inequalities that are hallmarks of mass incarceration in the United States.
The origin story of Right of Return is detailed in a new award-winning documentary film, Art & Krimes by Krimes, which makes its worldwide streaming debut this fall via Paramount +. Directed by Alysa Nahmias and distributed by MTV Documentary films, the film incorporates visual art, animation, in-depth interviews and an original score that traces Krimes’ story alongside Craig as they overcome immense obstacles and ultimately found Right of Return.
