When We Were Very Young: Jailbird Lullabies
- Stephanie Silk
- Jun 5
- 2 min read
Updated: Jun 9
New Work by Penelope Houston
Penelope Houston's newest mug shot series is a mixed-media exploration of innocence and guilt, featuring pencil portraits of twelve characters accused of crimes ranging from delinquency to patricide. Collaged onto full-page illustrations from a 1916 book of nursery rhymes, they tell stories of tangled childhoods made more dangerous by the unexpected, nightmarish, and sometimes humorous intrusions of insect morphology.
On the eve of 1977, Penelope moved from her home in the Pacific Northwest to California to attend the San Francisco Art Institute. Within six months her career in visual arts was side-tracked by the formation of the critically acclaimed proto-punk band the Avengers. Since then she has performed over 1000 shows with the Avengers and her solo bands throughout the USA and Europe. Venues include CBGB’s, The Whiskey a Go Go, Winterland Ballroom, as well as LA MOCA and the De Young Museum in SF. She has released 13 albums with independent and major labels. Her musical career is well-documented in publications from Newsweek to Slash. Despite this detour, visual art has always been anchored in her mind and her return to two-dimensional imagery presents a seasoned world view.
“Each arrest photo speaks to me of a journey leading to an ill-fated moment, petty or disastrous, that these cautionary tales failed to prevent. My fascination with the faces of the accused never ends, and I hope to illuminate the beauty, pathos, and recognition I find in them.”
- Penelope Houston, Oakland, CA, 2025
Penelope's show When We Were Very Young: Jailbird Lullabies is up in the Nielsen Arts gallery. Please join the reception for Penelope on Saturday, June 7th from 6-8pm.
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