More than 20 000 people are serving sentences in our closed prisons. However, we stand out in European comparison with one worrying fact - up to 70% of those released return to prison. Open prisons offer an alternative - they comprise facilities where convicts live with greater freedom, work off-site and maintain contact with loved ones. This approach, common in some European countries for more than a century, significantly reduces recidivism - in some cases by up to 10%.
Architecture can play a crucial role. "The environment in which a person spends years of their life affects their behaviour and their chances of successful integration after release. Elements familiar from community or therapeutic buildings are key - natural light, views, airiness, shared spaces, but also plenty of privacy," says Jan Jakub Tesař, head of the studio.
Students of the Tesař-Barla studio asked themselves the questions: can architecture help reduce recidivism? Where should prisons stand? And are they really reforming anyone? Their analysis delved into the Czech prison system - from prison typology to operational principles. The starting point for the design was the site of the former airport near Tábor, where a new medium and high security prison is planned.
They cooperated with the General Directorate of the Prison Service of the Czech Republic, visited real prisons and consulted their proposals with experts from practice. Among others, psychologist Colonel PhDr. Soňa Haluzová, architect Prof. Ivan Koleček - author of the award-winning prison in Lausanne and expert on prison system Mgr. A. Dr. techn. Andrea Seelich. Dissident and publicist František "Čuňas" Stárek also shared his personal experiences.
The Fišer-Nezpěváková design studio also joined the theme. The students here designed prison cell equipment - durable, safe, easy to maintain. The result is designs that combine minimalism, functionality and ergonomics while meeting strict standards. There are not only visualizations of the cells, but also models of selected elements - all to scale and with an emphasis on realistic usability.
FAZÓNA - a semester-long exhibition of studio works by Faculty of Architecture - is open from 26 May to 20 June daily from 9.00 to 18.00. It will offer more than 1,000 projects by nearly seventy studios of architecture and urbanism, landscape architecture and design. Entrance is wheelchair accessible and free of charge. All the projects created by students of CTU FA can be viewed online, work from the first study year have their own web gallery.