five Prison stories
From the series: Sometimes awful things· 2011 – 2012
Single channel HD film with stereo sound · 5’20 · 2012 · Edition of 10 + 2 AP
5 photographs · Edition of 10 + 2 AP
five Prison stories I · photograph · 2012
Imagine what your life would be like if you were imprisoned.
Not the fictionalized Prison you’re shown on TV, but a real Prison, a Prison of the everyday. A Prison of the minutia. A space where you lose your freedom of movement, your freedom of choice, your privacy and to a large extent your identity.
five Prison stories relays five stories about life inside a maximum security Prison. It does so in an understated, matter of fact, yet private and sometimes almost humourous way. Sylvia gives us insight into a way of living and a space that most people have no exposure to, or experience with.
five Prison stories II · photograph · 2012
five Prison stories III · photograph · 2012
The stories are told in the third person by a prison guard and are set against images and footage of the inside of a prison. The stories are titled:
- “visiting you on table 33”
- “They did have pottery and a kiln”
- “It’s not homosexuality. Its jail sex”
- “There was excessive use, not for the purposes they were intended.”
- “At least you are giving people contact.”
five Prison stories makes the inaccessible accessible in a simple and engaging way.
five Prison stories V · photograph · 2012
The work is part of a larger series called Sometimes awful things have their own kind of beauty. A series about prisoners and people who were committed in mental asylums. These works consider spaces, lives and environments that are off limits to most of society and reflect on what performance means for those who live where private and public co-exist.
Opening minute · five Prison stories · 2012
Also in this series
For collectors
five Prison stories is available as a single-channel HD film and 5 photographs. Works are a limited edition of 10 + 2 AP and start from €700 unframed.
Enquire about this workFor galleries and curators
five Prison stories is available for exhibition, screening and loan. Proposals and studio visits are welcome.
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