above: Average Length of Stay LMDC 2013: 16 days

Rebecca Cavalcante

artist statement

The data shown in the grid of birds is the average length of stay for the Louisville Metro Detention Center (LMDC) for the years 2004-2021. Each line on the small squares represents 1 day. We see over this 18 year period the average length of stay has more than doubled with a fluctuating range of 12 days-32 days. Most people incarcerated at LMDC are pretrial, they have yet to be convicted of a crime. 

The data shown with the hoops and thread is population data. The permanent in-bed capacity of LMDC is 1,353. Once capacity is reached, incarcerated folks are given a cot or are forced to sleep on the floor. 1,458 gold threads represent the daily population average for 2021. The color-coded neon threads represent the daily population total for Feb 2021-Nov 2022. 

We give data the power to guide how society collectively moves by allowing decision-makers to blur the lines of humanity as they lean into numbers and reports, not the people behind them. 


about this work

The phrase ‘data-driven’ has become woven into the very fabric of how we operate as a society. It is used in almost every industry that impacts our daily lives, government, education, healthcare, housing, retail, entertainment, city development and much more. We give data the power to guide how society collectively moves by allowing decision makers to blur the lines of humanity as they lean into numbers and reports. But behind every data point, behind every number, behind every graph and spreadsheet there are human beings. When we strip those humans of their flesh and blood, making them numbers in a spreadsheet it becomes easier to justify systematic oppression and push accountability from people making decisions to numbers.

Using data collected through open records requests, Louisville government open data sharing sites, and various reports from invested parties, Rebecca Cavalcante creates abstract data visualizations that move us from data that tells stories of oppression towards data that tells stories of a better world for every community. Through this mixed media art, she create an entrance to the people behind the data and the stories they have to tell. She works to empower communities and individuals to learn the basics of data collection, open records, finding public data, and data analysis so they can use it to advocate for the things they need for their communities to thrive, using art as a way to present their findings to the larger community and policymakers. She wants people to know that they can use easily accessible tools, community engagement, and art to reclaim our collective data and build a better world for us all. She hopes that we can collectively begin to distort the data-driven world we are presented to reclaim our humanity and the stories hidden within.


grants

Kentucky Foundation for Women 2023 Art Meets Activism Grant| (Louisville) to create spaces for families impacted by incarceration to grow in community by building a community art piece. Through art workshops, an online survey and research, this project will culminate in a digital zine and a large-scale community art piece juxtaposing the beauty of nature with the starkness of data to visualize the impact of incarceration on Kentucky families.

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Fund For The Arts provider bio


gallery exhibitions

http://garnernarrative.com/about-our-shows-gallery-blog/slow-going-derby-season-reflections-showing-april-and-may-at-garner-narrative

http://garnernarrative.com/about-our-shows-gallery-blog/i-have-a-lot-on-my-mind-dec-3-2022-jan-15-2023

http://garnernarrative.com/about-our-shows-gallery-blog/find-magic-a-group-show-sept-2-25-2022​