A Choreography of Human Transition: Strategic Insertion of an Intervention

Spatial anxiety is very real. Historically this concept has been utilised in the architecture of restraint (Johnston, 42), where punishment is based heavily on isolation and the limitation of freedom.  Under these conditions of incarceration one does not have the choice to circulate throughout spaces to find environments in which one will thrive. If for whatever reason prisoners are allowed to move without complete containment, movement is conducted under the most extreme of supervision (Fairweather, 31).  In most societies the right to privacy and most other human privileges are removed once a severe crime is committed. Although it would not be controversial to suggest that living under these conditions is inhuman, the traditional criteria for becoming forced into incarceration requires that the convicted commits acts considered to be ‘inhumane’ (Rodham, 2013).  Most specialists in the architecture of restraint turn to the safety of traditional prison design, responding without much consideration for innovation.  This Thesis engages with an ongoing focus on reform, (see fig 0.01) specifically exploring the domain of transition. In attempts to define an appropriate mid-point between two worlds; prison and society (see fig 0.02). However, achieving this within the realm of interior architecture first requires the establishment of a strategic design process.