Draft:Donald "C-Note" Hooker

Donald Oliver Hooker better known by his street name C-Note (born December 13, 1965), is an American artist, poet, playwright, and musician whose work often addresses themes of systemic injustice and prison reform. His art draws on his experiences within the criminal justice system, exploring themes of violence, redemption, and the resilience of the human spirit. C-Note's work has gained recognition within the prison art community, and has been dubbed the "King of Prison Hip Hop."

Born and raised in Los Angeles, California, C-Note is also known for his association with the Crips, a street gang that significantly influenced his early life and later his artistic endeavors. His works frequently address the realities of gang life, the criminal justice system, and the broader socio-political issues affecting African Americans.

Artistic emergence
C-Note discovered art as an outlet for self-expression and a way to confront the realities of prison life while incarcerated. Self-taught in drawing and painting, he began to explore various mediums, addressing themes of violence, addiction, redemption, and systemic flaws of the justice system through his art, which includes poetry, spoken word, drawings, and music. The American Prison Writing Archive (APWA), hosted by Johns Hopkins University, has preserved some of his written works.



Impact and recognition
C-Note's artistic contributions have earned him recognition within the prison art community and beyond. His participation in various exhibitions, educational programs, and collaborations with academic institutions underscores the role of art in advocating for social justice and change.

The Through the Wall: The Prison Arts Collective exhibition held at CB1-G Gallery in 2016, showcased the diverse artistic styles of incarcerated artists, including the work of C-Note. The exhibition featured the art from three Southern California prisons—two men's prisons (California Institution for Men and California State Prison, Los Angeles County) and one women's prison (California Institution for Women)—the exhibition highlighted the creative expression found within correctional facilities and emphasized the potential of collaborative programs between universities and prisons. Founded by Professor Annie Buckley, the Prison Arts Collective, which presented the exhibition, encapsulates the work by the California State University, San Bernardino Community-based Art. C-Note's participation in this exhibition through his artwork Mprisond  contributed to his recognition as a prison artist.

C-Note's commitment to education and rehabilitation was further evidenced by his active participation in the Prisoner Reentry Institute (now the Institute for Justice and Opportunity) at John Jay College of Criminal Justice. He was twice featured in the student-run newsletter, "Our Voice," with front-page articles highlighting his personal journey, artistic endeavors, and advocacy for incarcerated individuals. These features not only showcased his talents but also his dedication to personal growth and his efforts to inspire others facing similar challenges.

C-Note's artwork, which often critiques the prison industrial complex and the pharmaceutical industry, was featured in the 2018 exhibition Capitalizing on Justice. This exhibit, organized by the Corrections Accountability Project and covered by media outlets such as The Guardian and Hypebeast, showcased works by incarcerated artists exploring the theme of commodification within the criminal justice system. C-Note's contribution, a piece highlighting the overuse of psychotropic medication in prisons, reflects his ongoing activism on this issue.

C-Note became friends with fellow prisoner Minister King X, aka Pyeface. In the summer of 2019, King was released from prison. King had served 24 years; six years in federal prison, while the remaining 18 were in maximum security prisons throughout California.

By the fall of 2019, the pair's shared passion for art and activism led King X to establish the annual Ratcliff Awards, an artivist award show and fundraiser that supports the newsprint publications San Francisco Bay View and California Prison Focus. The Ratcliff Awards were named in honor of Mary Ratcliff and Willie Ratcliff, the current owners and publishers of the San Francisco Bay View newspaper. The award show Artivists in Action and Solidarity: Rattle the KAGE, featured a silent auction of prison art curated by C-Note. Proceeds went to participating incarcerated artists and the two newsprint publications.

In the winter of 2020, the Academy of Integrated Humanities and New Media (AIM), a film program at Tamalpais High School in Mill Valley, California, sought out C-Note and Minister King X for their mini-documentary Slacktivism. The student filmmakers interviewed the two artivists and featured them prominently in their mini-documentary on the subject of Slacktivism. C-Note's commentary on the shortcomings of the Kony 2012 online movement, sparked an entire segment on the subject.

In the fall of 2021, C-Note and King were featured in the online exhibition Art on Abolition, part of the Freedom & Captivity initiative, a state-wide public humanities initiative in the State of Maine. This exhibition included works from a national open call for art that responded to the prompt "What does abolition look like, sound like, feel like?" and aimed to challenge the current carceral system and inspire imaginative visions for a future without prisons.

Two projects were featured in the event, a solo work by C-Note, the paintoem (painting + poem), The Prism of Abolitionism, and a joint project by C-Note, King, and King's sister Abrique Brown lending her vocals on the soundtrack to the film short Abolish It. The film short involves the tale of how King and C-Note met in prison, their role of creating art while in prison, particularly performing arts, with their ultimate goal of having their works go from the cage to the stage. The film ends with Minister King X standing in front of a large indoor lobby display for the Broadway play Hamilton. Abolish It is still available for viewing on the Freedom & Captivity YouTube channel.

In the 2019-2020 academic year, C-Note collaborated with Makenzie Stiles, a fourth-year fashion design student at the Columbus College of Art and Design, on her fashion collection Mercy. This fashion line incorporated prison art through tattoo machine designs on leather, aiming to provide a platform for incarcerated artists and promote awareness of their experiences. The collection was intended to be shown at the CCAD 2020 spring fashion show, but the event was canceled due to Covid-19 health restrictions.

In 2020, C-Note wrote the poem Journey to Afrofuturism for the February 3, 2020, 30th Annual Celebration of African American Poets and Their Poetry. The poetry recital was held at the West Oakland Public Library, and hosted by Wanda Sabir, Professor Emeritus at Peralta Community College District, and the Arts Editor at the San Francisco Bay View newspaper. Journey to Afrofuturism is an allegorical poem about the Calafia, the Black Queen who is the namesake for the State of California, and how her queendom would be the nursing grounds for the Afrofuturism movement. After the poetry recital, C-Note created a drawing for the poem.

Speculative City, an online literary magazine specializing in speculative fiction, published Journey to Afrofuturism, both the poem and drawing in their Winter 2020, Issue 10, "Afrofuturism." The issue was dedicated to Afrofuturism and featured the works of several Black creators.

For the academic year 2021-2022, Journey to Afrofuturism was exhibited and recited by Hip Hop artist and Hip Hop Congress Board Chairman Rahman Jamaal during the Afrofuturism Then and Now event hosted by the Institute of the Arts and Sciences (IAS) at the University of California, Santa Cruz.

Studio Collective, the official design journal of Virginia Tech's School of Architecture + Design, released its 20th Volume in the spring of 2024. It took on the complexities of prisons and prison spaces, which led to a reader advisory warning. C-Note was interviewed for the journal and his thoughts and artwork were featured prominently.