Grace Moskowitz is a transgender woman who’s been in men’s prisons in Florida since she was 18. Three years ago, she got a pen pal in Charlottesville, and the two had something important in common. Both are artists.
“As you might imagine, her life is pretty rough,” Williams says.
That’s Maryanna Williams, a Charlottesville print maker who says Moskowitz was abused as a child.
“Some people are just born into a hell,” Williams concludes.
And for decades, she’s been attacked by men imprisoned with her. The state will not put Moskowitz in a women’s prison.
“Florida has stopped acknowledging transgender," her Virginia pen pal explains. "They still consider her Michael Moskowitz."
Now 55, Moskowitz is an accomplished artist, drawing realistic portraits and abstract works about what she sees behind bars, explained in a letter to Williams.
“Every door has scratches and images that crazy prisoners etch into the paint over the years, and these drawings are my translation of them.”
So Williams has decided to show her friend’s art at the McGuffey Center in Charlottesville.
“She’s thrilled about it – about people getting to see that she exists.”
The show – entitled Dear Grace -- opens officially on November 7th at 5:30, and Williams will speak about the artist the following day at 3:00.
