Stephen Mee is a renowned cocaine trafficker who has now drastically transformed his life path through the use of art. He was born in 1958 and loved art from an early age and took an apprenticeship in graphic design whilst studying sign writing at Oldham college of art and design. But art was not the only thing in Stephen's life as his involvement with crime began in 1967 at only 9 years old. This resulted in Stephen accumulating a 30 year prison sentence in 1996. During Stephen's sentence he was able to reconnect to his love of art and launch his artistic career 10 years after his release form prison.
"The reason why I have waited nearly ten years since my release is that I never wanted to be just another ex-prisoner telling stories of my past. I always wanted to show that there are options to the continual revolving door of being a prisoner. In the last ten years, I have been a professional artist, proving it is possible to change with the right education and skills which I achieved in prison. Gaining a BA honours in fine art gave me the tools to build a career and stay away from crime. However, it took me 9 years to achieve this in prison, because the system is designed as a warehouse to keep you coming back. Very little resources are pushed towards education and rehabilitation." - Stephen Mee
Since being released from prison Stephen has started to showcase his artworks. His latest appearance being an exhibition called, 'Past, Present, and future' which took place across 6 days at the OXO Tower Wharf, with live special guest performances from rapper, 'Suspect OTB.' Stephen's most recent addition to his art collection is the 'Release Mee' NFT which consists of 2 digital installations, 'The Expo Edition & The Space Edition,' to commemorate a jail cell where artist, Stephen Mee, carried out his sentence. The NFTs will be enhanced with a powerful unreleased track by rapper, 'Suspect OTB.'
Watch out for the rest of Stephen's artworks coming soon to Turner Art Perspective...