Design Week in Milan: Dropcity pushes boundaries of detention center design with "Prison Times" exhibit
In the heart of Milan, Italy, Dropcity's latest exhibition, "Prison Times: Spatial Dynamics of Penal Environments," critically examines the architectural and spatial aspects of prisons and penal environments. This thought-provoking exhibition, presented at the architecture centre in Milan, invites visitors to reflect on the conditions of prison environments.
The exhibition, which runs from 3 April to 31 May at Dropcity, via Giovanni Battista Sammartini, 60, 20125 Milan, Italy, aims to shed light on the spatial dynamics of punishment. It explores how built environments affect the perception and reality of imprisonment, using design and architecture as a lens to reveal broader social and political implications of prison spaces.
Andrea Caputo, founder of Dropcity, was interviewed about the exhibition. Caputo's vision is to transform unused industrial spaces into collaborative creative hubs, and "Prison Times" aligns with that vision by addressing incarceration beyond traditional institutional narratives. The project includes a book, exhibition, and discussion program, emphasizing both cultural and civic dialogue around the penal system.
The exhibition is displayed in a dramatic space within the tunnels behind Milan Central Station. Each space is clearly defined and recognizable, with the simplicity of the installation meant to neutralize any media manipulation or ambiguous interpretation. The duality between furniture families and units hosting works of artists selected for the show is the only prevailing hierarchy in the exhibition.
The research for the exhibition revealed a common thread of anonymous designers with strict, non-negotiable rules of action across various countries. Incarcerated individuals were observed to modify objects in response to various necessities, sometimes driven by self-defence and survival needs. This insight is showcased through archival objects, infographics, and spatial installations spread across five tunnels.
The public program includes talks, radio transmissions, and a collaboration with Central St Martins students. The exhibit promises to prompt discussions around space and the penal system, encouraging experimental and interdisciplinary engagement with issues of imprisonment through design.
Dropcity positions itself as an anti-institutional platform, and "Prison Times" aligns with that vision by avoiding tiresome reenactments of prison environments or imitations of harsh daily life. Instead, it focuses on detention environments through the lens of design and architecture, aiming to serve as tools for reflection on the conditions of prison environments.
The project aims to investigate the spaces, methods, and conditions of the contemporary prison environment, shedding light on a global concern that affects societies worldwide. By providing an open, accessible platform for discussion, "Prison Times" invites the public to reconsider and challenge the structures that shape penal experiences.
The interior-design elements within the exhibition "Prison Times" are strategically employed to highlight the lifestyle implications of prison spaces, offering visitors a unique home-and-garden perspective on the conditions of detention environments. By focusing on the spatial dynamics of penal environments through an interdisciplinary lens, "Prison Times" aims to encourage dialogue and foster innovative solutions for improving the overall lifestyle of those impacted by the prison system.
