Paintings with Purpose: The Art of Raymond Towler

In 2010, after spending more than 29 years in prison for a crime he didn’t commit, Raymond Towler became a free man due to numerous rounds of DNA testing and the tireless work of reporters at The Columbus Dispatch and the legal staff of the Ohio Innocence Project at the University of Cincinnati College of Law’s Rosenthal Institute for Human Rights.

When Raymond was wrongfully convicted of rape, he was 24 years old, an Army veteran, and an aspiring musician and artist.  Despite his imprisonment, he continued composing and became a popular performer in prison. Since his release, the Cleveland native and multi-instrumentalist (guitar, bass, drums) has gone full throttle back into his musical career, becoming a contemporary jazz recording artist and releasing three albums full of compelling vocal and instrumental tracks thematically driven by his newfound status as a free man – This Freedom, This Freedom II and Life Is Good.

Raymond never put down his artistic self while imprisoned.  He painted hundreds of pieces in his incarceration, and was able to both sell his work and send a number of pieces home to his family and friends for safekeeping and gifts.  These same paintings, made decades ago, still have a life in the free world, and some of them are now shared with you.

Creating works of art, paintings, and music brought peace to Raymond and shielded him from a hostile environment that destroys many men.  Raymond believes that the ability to continue to create is a lifesaver because when artists create, they can be free no matter wherever they are.

“I am most grateful these days for the opportunity to share my story, art and music with so many appreciative people,” Raymond says. “I also feel very blessed that I am both physically and mentally healthy, and that I am able to reason and smile. Moving on from almost three decades of Hell behind bars, I thank God daily for those gifts that I have been given.”

Proceeds from the sale of Raymond's work will go to the upkeep of  The Exonoree Home.