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The debate over the purpose -- and success -- of incarceration rages on today. But in at least one case -- that of J.R. "Johnny" Cash -- prison was a redemptive experience, even if it was just for two musical performances in January 1968. And now, thanks to a traveling photographic exhibit open through Aug. 11 at The Center for Humanities and Arts at University of Arkansas Pulaski Tech in North Little Rock, music fans can revisit the events that reshaped the Man in Black and rewrote music history.

Sociologists have debated for decades the rehabilitative value prisons have on the inmate. Older schools of thought hold that prison is by definition a punitive institution, meant to punish and therefore discourage aberrant behavior in the future. More recently, efforts have been made to reshape inmates while inside, offering them opportunities to recast themselves to live productive lives upon release.