Today, writing for Time's blog Lightbox, Carmen Winant published "Inside America’s Juvenile-Detention System" featuring 16 of our photos and an interview with Ross. We think the readers of TIME will benefit from seeing the images and hearing about the project, and we hope to expand the discussion of the juvenile justice system and the need for reform.
As a teacher, I regularly have conversations with my students about how art can and should function. What constitutes an object as belonging in a gallery as opposed to a community? Who instituted these boundaries? Is it possible to make art that occupies both worlds? Finally, can art in either world effect real change? None of these questions are easily answered, or even attempted. The photographic work of Richard Ross dares engage their premise.