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Comparative Penology and the Prisoner Experience

Perspectives and the art of comparison - a COMPEN exhibition

Outside wall of the prison running the whole perimeter.

Cell windows on a newer cell block. Prisoners are using make-shift techniques to try and discourage pigeons to sit on top of their window and 'crap' into their personal space.

Crocheted figure of a prison officer hanging on the wall in the staff office.

Location of the anti-suicide knife key which is positioned on one of the landings.

Outdoor exercise area for one wing including table tennis, a chessboard and grass and trees. Fallen branches have not been removed. Many prisoners play football or sit on the benches in their smoking breaks. Even though they are visible, the wall and fences are vanishing slightly behind the shrubs and trees.

Living room in visitation facility which can be booked for several days at a time for families. There is an inside and outside area, a kitchen, a bedroom and a children's bedroom.

View of the inner area manned by staff with wings going off on four sides. Including the basement, all wings have five landings.

Arts and crafts workshop which features a lot of the art produced during classes including linoleum prints, metal rhombuses and openly available tools including computers.

Lunch for one wing sitting outside the staff office waiting to be dropped off in each cell during lock-up over lunchtime.

Newly reinforced wire mesh outside a cell window. The space between the bars and wire mesh is used to store milk and other items which is easier to drop down into the space than pick up again, so it invariably gets stuck.

Overview of the prison island with the chapel in the foreground and accommodation blocks in the background.

View of part of the library which is well-stocked and includes the possibility to play the piano. The outside recreation area includes rocks and trees - someone using the library has a good view of the landscape, uninterrupted by bars.

Wall painting on the 'enhanced' wing where prisoners can sit to chat to staff.

Reminder to keep drug-free on the wall in the communal area of one wing.

An occupied single cell with wooden furniture and other everyday items like a washing basket, a thermostat that the occupant can control themselves.

A training hall for prisoners who want to learn bricklaying. Many of these workshops only allow a small number of prisoners to attend while the majority of the prison is locked up for most of the day.

The camera used to capture the image of incoming prisoners in reception. This is part of the ritual of entry, also including a search, change of clothes, handing over of belongings and input of prisoner number and details into the database.

The outside wood workshop where prisoners use heavy machinery to produce all kinds of goods including items that can be made for their families.

Dining room with abstract art on the wall and many condiments on each table. The large windows have floor-length curtains and the dining room has a view over the duck pond and towards the mountains.

Mural on a wall opposite the main cell block reading 'freedom' and 'choice'.

Carefully developed garden that prisoners can book to go into on their own via appointments to get time away from the wing and their usual environment.

The outside of the prison wall and one part of the residential block seen from the neighbouring community.

View from the kitchen of an accommodation unit - prisoners can make themselves some food anytime. Knives are not seen as an issue and are openly available.

Empty single cell waiting for new occupant on the VPU (vulnerable prisoner unit) where vulnerable prisoners, including sex offenders and prisoners who owe a large debt are kept seperate from the rest of the prison population.

Prison gardens behind a cell block where prisoners are working as gardeners to grow vegetables and flowers.

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© 2020 Compen, University of Cambridge

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