Imprisonment of the Human Body: Reforming the system & lives through architecture [using Pollsmoor]
Master Thesis
2023
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This project looks at an approach to the design of a prison visitors centre for Pollsmoor Maximum Security Prison which is grounded in humane design principles. Pollsmoor – like many prisons around the world and in South Africa – presents issues of gangsterism and overcrowding which are exacerbated by poor living conditions and a lack of effective rehabilitation programmes. This results in high reoffence rates upon release which then places further pressure on the system. Research into this cycle has shown that the single biggest determinant in reducing recidivism (reoffence) is the degree to which an inmate has a relationship with family or community members that are able to invest in them and provide support (Turanovic & Tasca, 2019). A prison visitors centre presents the liminal space where family and community relationships are maintained and strengthened. Visiting an inmate in Pollsmoor is however, not a liminal experience because there is no defined separate visitors' centre. Families with young children cross into the actual cell blocks in order to visit loved ones. Therefore, the intent of this project is to create a separate visitors' centre integrated into nature within a secure portion of the agricultural land in Pollsmoor. It is vital that the visitors centre typology is challenged in favour of a humane environment which doesn't criminalise innocent family members. This is extended to both contact visits and non-contact visits which are sometimes unavoidable. The larger intent behind this work is for the visitor's centre to firstly, fit within a master plan for the redesign of Pollsmoor but secondly for it to begin the conversation around prison design in South Africa. Prisons will always be needed in society to provide justice to individuals affected by a crime. However, if we intend for inmates to behave like decent human beings upon release, we need to treat them as human beings during incarceration.
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Pettit, K. 2023. Imprisonment of the Human Body: Reforming the system & lives through architecture [using Pollsmoor]. . ,Faculty of Engineering and the Built Environment ,School of Architecture, Planning and Geomatics. http://hdl.handle.net/11427/38144