Yet, Richardson’s presence shattered these misconceptions and showed Mansfield that he too could be an artist. It was a revelation that would shape the rest of his life. “I was convinced that I would spend the next few years learning to hone my abilities in drawing, painting, and hopefully sculpture,” he said. Mansfield threw himself into his newfound passion, despite the limitations of his prison environment. He couldn’t use tools; he even had to ask for a pencil to be sharpened. But he persevered, and his dedication impressed an assessor who declared that his art was the best they had ever seen, not just in prisons but anywhere. It was a moment of transformation. “That’s when I left my old life behind, and my new life started,” he recounted. “I genuinely felt a weight lifted off my shoulders. I walked back to my cell and I felt two or three pounds lighter.” Mansfield’s journey was marked by remarkable correspondence with acclaimed artists like Sarah Lucas, Gavin Turk, and Angus Fairhurst. Their packages and support were like lifelines, connecting him to a world he could barely grasp from behind bars. “It wasn’t until a few months down the line that I realized these people (who are sending me packages) are really important people in the art world,” he reflected. As he continued his art studies within the prison walls, he received invitations from these artists to meet them after his release. This fueled his determination to make a fresh start, and he embarked on a degree at the University of East London just before his release in 2001. “I was the happiest person that university had ever seen,” he recalled. “I was released from one institution and straight into another.”
Gary Mansfield
The transformation was evident in photographs taken on the day of his release and the same day at the university. His joy and enthusiasm were palpable, and he looked a decade younger on his university card, a testament to the profound change he had undergone. However, life outside the prison walls was a stark contrast to the testosterone-filled environment he had left behind. The liberal atmosphere of the university was a culture shock, and he had to adjust to a world where men and women freely mixed, a world that had evolved during his incarceration. “I was like a little puppy,” he chuckled. “I was running around everywhere with a big smile on my face, wagging my tail no matter where I was.” Mansfield’s journey was a series of extraordinary twists and turns. After graduation, he unexpectedly gave up art for seven years, convinced that he had no time, money, or space for it. However, a chance encounter with the influential artist Tracy Emin changed everything. She said to him, “Look at the route you took to get into the art world, and you’ve
152
Powered by FlippingBook