Kate’s Story

Finding A Sense Of Purpose Through The Koestler Awards

I’ve always been better with words than with pictures, not realising that words could be my art.

I entered the Koestler Awards the first time in 2018, and had work selected for the 100 Years On project. I’d not long been in prison and everything seemed alien and daunting to me. The art department and prison workshop I was placed in were compiling their Koestler Awards entries, and I was asked to help. Even this invitation gave me some confidence – a sense of purpose in this strange existence that was now my reality.

When my work was selected to be displayed at the Supreme Court, and the Koestler Arts team wrote to me with visitors’ feedback and photos of my work on display, I felt proud that a bit of me could be useful, and interesting to others.

Over this past year, due to this confidence boost, I’ve been encouraged to try different mediums to express myself and my feelings, and have entered these into the Koestler Awards.

Whether or not my work is awarded, the support and motivation I received from Koestler Arts positively influenced my first year in prison, and has given me something positive to share with family, friends and those I meet in prison.