Accountable Arts Engagement
Vern McKee – A Guide to Accountable Arts Engagement
Bill Cleveland played a leading role in the Arts-In-Corrections Program in the 80s and subsequently authored Art in Other Places: Artists at Work in America’s Community and Social Institutions.
Bill Cleveland writes, “Vern McKee was president of both the Art and Musicians Guilds at Vacaville Prison. Back when we started, he told us that bringing the arts into Vacaville would save both lives and money. He was right about that. He was also spot on with the advice he gave me in the summer of ‘83. He said that our honeymoon was over and that given the rising tensions in the system, there were a lot of lives at stake with little room for error. Then he shared what I have come to call Vern’s Rules.”
The following is a summary of Vern’s Rules, capturing his key insights from a specific period on how to engage with honesty, skill, and respect—while acknowledging that these principles continue to evolve and adapt over time.
Vern’s Rules for Arts Engagement
- Dress for success: Vern described prison as a high-stakes theater where how you present yourself is important. He noticed many artists showed up dressed in ways that didn’t fit the setting, making it harder for them to be taken seriously. He encouraged me to clean up, get a haircut, and wear a suit — and he was right. It made a meaningful difference.
- No fools: Vern warned against bringing in outsiders with romanticized ideas about incarceration. People inside didn’t want saviors — they wanted skilled artists who could teach and create. Respect, not pity, was the key.
- No hacks: Honesty and skill were non-negotiable. People inside could spot phonies a mile away. They wanted collaborators who knew their craft and weren’t pretending.
- Know your place: Vern reminded us that the ability to leave made us permanent outsiders. No matter how much we learned, we would never truly understand the lived experience of incarceration — and pretending otherwise was dangerous.
- Do your homework: Even if we couldn’t fully grasp the experience, we had a duty to learn about the social, cultural, and political landscape inside. Vern warned us not to assume that people or places that looked similar were the same — everyone has a different story.
- Survival isn’t simple: Vern rejected the idea of heroes and villains. He saw people experiencing incarceration and correctional staff alike as navigating a complex, high-stakes environment, making difficult decisions to survive. It wasn’t about good or bad — it was about adaptation and resilience.
- Free speech = responsibility: Vern came from an interdependent culture where everyone was accountable to each other. The question wasn’t whether you could speak freely, but how to speak the truth in a way that didn’t cause harm.
- No quick exits: Once someone taps into what Vern called “the creative life force,” you can’t just walk away. He believed access to creativity was vital — even life-saving — and we had a responsibility to keep that door open.
- Take care: Vern urged us to prioritize self-care — to treat this work like disaster relief. Staying strong for ourselves meant staying strong for the people we were working with.
- Relationships are everything: In a place where trust and loyalty can mean survival, relationships mattered more than anything. Vern built lasting, healthy partnerships — inside and out — and never promised more than he could deliver. He kept his word. He was a great partner and a great artist.
Vern’s wisdom remains a guide for anyone working in challenging, high-stakes environments. His rules remind us that art is powerful — but only when approached with honesty, humility, and respect.