final model photos

final drawings

one-sentence narrative

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"A political prisoner is exiled to an

island home in the middle of the ocean,

and has lost everything and been given

nothing; only the rest of their isolated

life to reflect on it."

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Although it fascinates me, the 1785 conceptual prison design by the English philosopher Jeremy Bentham is an idea of imprisonment that I have not pursued.

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In his Proposal for a New and Less Expensive mode of Employing and Reforming Convicts, 1798, Bentham said of his prison:

"A building circular... The prisoners in their cells, occupying the circumference - The officers in the centre. By blinds and other contrivances, the inspectors concealed... from the observation of the prisoners: hence the sentiment of a sort of omnipresence - The whole circuit reviewable with little or... without any, change of place. One station in the inspection part affording the most perfect view of every cell."

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Bentham's parti for the prison was cells under constant surveilance, and a feeling of "omnipresence." My idea for my prison is similar, in that there is a constant and overwhelming force, but opposite, as this force is the all-encompassing and empty ocean. The prisoner is not always being watched, but instead reminded that they are alone and forgotten.

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The 1814 exile of the French emperor Napoleon Bonaparte I has more to do with my idea than Bentham's Panopticon. Following his defeat and the occupation of Paris, a number of European leaders exiled Napoleon to the island of Elba, off the coast of Italy. He was allowed to keep the title of 'emperor,' but his empire was restricted to the tiny island.

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What influenced me about this situation is that he was not truly imprisoned and tortured, but only confined to the island. His house on Elba (above) shows this; it appears to be a standard domestic home. He was not made to physically suffer in a cell. Instead, his exile and suffering was psychological; giving him good living conditions and the title of 'emperor,' but keeping him confined to the island and surrounded by the ocean, so he is aware of his isolation.

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References

Napoleon TEXT: France.com. "Napoleon I of France." www.france.com/docs/364.html (accessed May 21, 2010)

Panopticon IMAGE: 'iRevolution.' http://irevolution.wordpress.com/2009/08/ (accessed May 21, 2010)

Napoleon IMAGES: Wikipedia. "Elba."http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elba (accessed May 21, 2010)

influential quotes

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From the film The Shawshank Redemption (1994):

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"You know what the Mexicans say about the Pacific? ... They say it has no memory."

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"...When they put you in that cell... and those bars slam home... that's when you know it's for real. A whole life blown away in the blink of an eye. Nothing left but all the time in the world to think about it."

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The film The Shawshank Redemption is, in truth, about hope and freedom, and the first quote is used to express a character's longing for a new life. But, I think it can also work the other way, and it is where my idea of reflection came from. The ocean completely isolates the rocky island, and has no memory and will not bear upon it. This is where the prisoner will spend the rest of their days, alone amongst the nothingness and reflecting on their new life; as the ocean has no memory, they will always remember that the rest of the world has forgotten them.

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And, the second quote reflects my approach to a prison of confinement and reflection, not dark torture. "... all the time in the world to think about it." The ocean does not offer anything new or changing; only quiet and continuous self-reflection. The prisoner acknowledges their new life of solitude, and this is the ultimate act of suffering for a formerly powerful person; giving them nothing but "all the time in the world" to reflect on the loss of power and their former life.

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project idea

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The narrative I drew from the man's reflection and loss was that of a political prisoner (a former powerful leader or influential polemic) stripped of their power, exiled and imprisoned to a small building atop a rocky outcrop in the middle of the ocean. The building would not be a true prison, or a place of punishment, torture or darkness, but more a place of isolation and self-reflection imposed on the prisoner.

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Thus I set myself one of my greatest challenges in my architectural studies so far - I would essentially be designing a prison. Most architects are commissioned by someone to design a building like a home or a gallery for the person's use, and so it is a place of peace, relaxation, suitability, happiness, etc. In this case, the client would be the man's political enemies who would be asking me to design a place of imprisonment and confinement. This scared me a little; how would I design a prison? Would I actually want to?

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This is how I expressed my idea through the architecture:

1. Three spaces would be linked as an ironic journey of ascension. The smallest space is confined with minimal windows and light. The second space and its windows are larger and let more light in. The final space is the largest, highest and the culmination of the journey, and is completely illuminated by a mostly glass exterior. The roofs are all slanted upwards and the directional windows point upwards, directing the man towards the final space.

2. This journey of ascension and the all-seeing upper room hints at some feeling of control and authority for the prisoner. But on the contrary, the prisoner is completely isolated by the surrounding ocean and open air, and can only stare out into the nothingness and contemplate the freedom he does not have.

3. The greater illumination as the spaces ascend is usually associated with freedom, content and health. This openness may feel wrong for a place of exile, but allowing the prisoner a lookout space to stare at the all-encompassing ocean reinforces his isolation and his absolute loss of power, and gives him nothing but all day to think about it.

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chosen painting

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What interested me immensely about Hopper's painting was this tormented man at the centre. There is a nude woman beside him and we are led to believe that whatever has occured between them is the focus of the man's thoughts. But I was more interested in the fact that he is clearly reflecting on something - 'philosophising,' as the title says. It seems that he is unhappy and has lost something, so I thought it would be interesting to extend this idea of reflection and loss.

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What is he reflecting on? What has he lost? Is it to do with the open window, the light and the world outside?

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Image source: Wells, Walter. Silent Theater: The Art of Edward Hopper. London: Phaidon Press Limited, 2007.

project 2