SEEN @ WAM &
SEEN: In the Stacks
AN INTERACTIVE EXPLORATION
OF THE CARCERAL STATE AND ITS ALTERNATIVES
About The Exhibit
In the spring of 2025, the 𝗪𝗲𝗶𝘀𝗺𝗮𝗻 𝗔𝗿𝘁 𝗠𝘂𝘀𝗲𝘂𝗺 presented SEEN @ WAM, an exhibition created as part of a years-long collaboration with WAAC, curated by WAAC director and founder, Emily Baxter. SEEN @ WAM featured currently incarcerated artists in collaboration with artists, activists, and academics in the Twin Cities community. Together they explored issues of incarceration, isolation, healing, and coming home. This exhibition was arranged across two galleries to evoke the experiences of “inside” (carceral) and “outside” (healing and community).
The collaborative exhibition SEEN @ WAM and its related public programs aimed to illuminate the effects of mass incarceration by clearing the pathways for people behind bars to have their voices heard, faces seen, and humanity recognized.
The exhibit took six years and more than two dozen people to bring to life. WAAC and the artist are indebted to many in the community and at the Weisman Art Museum, in particular, curator and dreamer Boris Oicherman, organizational wizard and shared drive wrangler Anna Turner, and fabricator, tinkerer, and magician Reggie Spanier. Thank you thank you thank you.
Weisman Art Museum
333 E River Parkway, Minneapolis, MN 55455
The Next Chapter
In the fall of 2025, the Hennepin County Library in downtown Minneapolis presented SEEN: In the Stacks, chapter two of the exhibition first installed at the Weisman Art Museum. SEEN: In the Stacks featured versions of the original artists’ works and was supported by programming throughout the run that challenged and uplifted the elements of the exhibit itself.
Minneapolis Central Library
300 Nicollet Mall, Minneapolis, MN 55401