BIDDEFORD — “You always think it can never happen to you,” said Trent Bell, a commercial photographer in Biddeford.

But after communicating with a childhood friend ”“ someone he respected, an educated professional with a wife and family ”“ who is now in the process of serving a 36-year prison sentence in New York State, Bell said he realized no one is immune from ending up in a cell.

“Small, insignificant, tiny things, little choices, could lead you on a path that takes you away from where you (were) headed or wanted to go,” he said.

His friend’s experience was Bell’s inspiration for an art exhibit that will open at the Biddeford art gallery Engine on Friday and continue through Feb. 22.

“REFLECT: Convict’s Letters to Their Younger Selves,” is a series of portraits of 12 people serving varied sentences at the Maine State Prison in Warren. Included in the portraits are the letters the convicts wrote, advising their younger selves how to avoid the future life decisions that led them to a prison cell.

Through the letters, “it gives you an opportunity to be in their heads,” said Bell.

Bell said he particularly related to an inmate named Brandon. The young man “seemed like the most genuine, sincere guy. … But a split-second decision put him behind bars. ”¦ All he wants to do now is be home, helping his father.”

The letter writing was “very hard for them to do,” said Bell. “To look inside and open up was hard for them.”

However, he said, afterward, the inmates said they were glad they did it.

Engine’s Executive Director Tammy Ackerman said she is looking forward to the public getting a glimpse of Bell’s work.

While this exhibit is different than fine art, “it definitely creates a reaction,” she said. “A show that stimulates thought and conversation is a good one.”

In order to create his exhibit, Bell needed permission from the Maine Department of Corrections.

After he explained his idea, both Corrections Commissioner Joseph Ponte and Maine State Prison Warden Rodney Bouffard gave the go-ahead, said department spokesman Scott Fish.

Fish said the department agreed to give Bell access to prisoners in the hope that it will give exhibit visitors pause.

“We hope it will make people think twice” before making a bad decision that could lead them spending time behind bars.

In addition to Bell’s portraits, the exhibit will include video documentation by Joe Carter and Maine State Prison guard portraits by Corey Desrochers.

The exhibit opening is Friday from 5-8 p.m. at Engine, 265 Main St., Biddeford. It will remain open through Feb. 22. Engine is open Tuesday through Friday from 1-6 p.m., and Saturday 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.

For more information, visit feedtheengine.org.

— Staff Writer Dina Mendros can be contacted at 282-1535, ext. 324 or [email protected].