VON + D.A.

long distance call

SEEN @ WAM

Coming February 8

long distance call

Mixed media installation and short films

Writer and mental health activist Von Johnson pairs with award-winning filmmaker, social practice artist and key member of the Minneapolis Black Arts Movement, D.A. Bullock to discuss the connection between communication and humanity.

Incarcerated people throughout Minnesota can only make calls at specific times and under strict time limits, leading to rushed, monitored, and incomplete conversations. With strict limitations on physical contact and many entrance barriers for families, in-person visits only further dehumanize incarcerated individuals.

Even in-person visits separate incarcerated individuals from their loved ones through the limitation or prohibition of touch, unreasonable time limits, obligatory invasive bodily searches of the incarcerated, and denial of access to visitors for unclear and even unfair reasons. According to the artists, this inability “to deliver love and touch and humanity … can diminish a person’s awareness of self. We expect rehabilitation, without allowing humanity.”

After experiencing a glimpse of this disconnect between Von and his family, D.A. encourages the leaving of personal messages and responses to the artwork, which will be sent back to Von.

Opening Day photos by Jayme Halbritter

ABOUT SEEN @ WAM

SEEN is a WAAC exhibition featuring currently incarcerated artists, activists, and students in collaboration with artists, activists, and academics in the Twin Cities community who together explore issues of incarceration, isolation, healing, and coming home.

Representing a range of cultural, personal, and professional backgrounds and diverse forms of artistic expression, people on the “inside” partnered with people on the “outside” on the basis of creative curiosities and personal affinities. This exhibition is laid out across two galleries that evoke the “inside,” carceral (east) and “outside,” healing and community (west) experiences.

The seven-installation exhibit works to stretch the bounds of the museum as a site for community engagement and critical examination of American carceral institutions.

Teams have worked together to better understand and explore carceral isolation and trauma and the many ways it has caused generational harm in their own bodies and those of their descendants. To bring healing to the cycle of harm, they connect their families, the community, and even themselves, through this exhibition thoughtfully curated with cacophony and quiet, isolation and community, criticism and celebration.

Meet the Artists

Von Johnson

LaVon Johnson is a Dog Handler/Trainer at Moose Lake, a Conflict Manager, and the Co-Creator of Programs like Let’s Talk and Building Character.

Over the years Von has facilitated training for numerous and varied justice-involved people, from guards and administrative staff to incarcerated people. Over the years, Von has developed programming like P.E.E.R. Hope, Building Character and, most recently, Let’s Talk; each program is geared to highlight critical areas and skills in carceral spaces, such as the ability to hold crucial conversations, engage in conflict resolution, foster restorative justice, and learn communication skills for life leading up to and upon reentry.

For twenty years, Von has sought to acquire and apply the education and tools needed to engage in and teach proper communication. Acquiring his IPS (Individual Personalized Science) Degree from Inver Hills, an A.A. and B.A. from Ashland University majoring in Communication, and certificates in conflict resolution training, traumatic brain injury communication and care, and mental health and substance use disorder mentoring. His expertise areas are in Conflict Resolution, Mediation, and structuring comprehensive approaches through the difficulties faced by those with Mental Health Disorders.

Von is an avid reader and multi-genre writer, and cares for and trains dogs who have suffered traumatic experiences.

D.A. Bullock

D.A. Bullock is an award-winning filmmaker and social practice artist in the field of story-based community organizing. His films have been featured at national and international festivals including Toronto International Film Festival & Chicago International Film Festival.

Bullock is the founder of Bully Creative Shop, a feature film, documentary, media art and digital content social enterprise, a 2014 McKnight IFP Media Artist Fellow, 2015 MN State Arts Board Grant recipient and 2016 Intermedia Arts / City of Minneapolis Creative Citymaking Artist and a 2017 Bush Fellow and co-founder of the Underground Media Collective.

Additional Artists

Eric Almond

Eric Almond, a dynamic filmmaker raised on the South Side of Chicago, channels the rich culture of his upbringing into his work, capturing authentic and diverse narratives. His unique perspective and visionary storytelling earned him recognition in 2021 when he was featured in Shoot Magazine’s prestigious New Director Showcase, marking him as a rising talent in the industry. Eric’s award-winning short film, Requiem for Black Love, gained acclaim for its deeply emotional and resonant portrayal of love and loss within the Black community. A 2025 Series Fest Executive Mentee, Eric continues to push creative boundaries. He recently launched Write On: Writer’s Room, a collaborative initiative focused on developing fresh, independent TV content. As part of this endeavor, he is spearheading the creation of The Village, a groundbreaking episodic project aimed at elevating the standard of independent television by bringing together writers and filmmakers to craft compelling, high-quality stories that resonate with modern audiences.

long distance call — Granny’s Little Puddin’ (film by Eric Almond and Rachel Raimist) crew:

Eric Almond – Director/Camera
Patrick Charles – Camera
Shoaib Noormohammad – Camera Assistant 
Charles Dean – Sound 
Kenneth George – Editor

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