Prison culture and heritage: Fremantle Prison Wall paintings and their artists
Lead Research Organisation:
University of Liverpool
Department Name: Sch of Law and Social Justice
Abstract
This is an exciting and innovative project which takes historical data and images used in a large-scale AHRC-funded project to co-create a new range of resources which will impact upon a wide range of people. We will produce a documentary which explores how and why two wall-murals were painted inside Fremantle Prison, an exhibition of nineteenth-century photographs of convicts in Hobart which shows how they still retain the power to challenge contemporary conceptions of criminals in the UK and Australia; and a set of online and printed resources which can be used tin campaigns and public-information strategies to increase social justice, and access to justice for marginalized sectors of the population.
This interdisciplinary innovative collaboration between criminologists, forensic anthropologists, filmmakers, cultural historians, heritage bodies, and a range of community-stakeholders, will develop resources which can be used to engage a wide range of different non-academic groups, including indigenous and white working-class communities in Western Australia; genealogists and family historians in Tasmania; undergraduates and school-students in both the UK and Australia. This kind of ambitious film-making and digital exhibition project is not without risk but has the potential to create a lasting and significant impact in both the UK and Australia.
This interdisciplinary innovative collaboration between criminologists, forensic anthropologists, filmmakers, cultural historians, heritage bodies, and a range of community-stakeholders, will develop resources which can be used to engage a wide range of different non-academic groups, including indigenous and white working-class communities in Western Australia; genealogists and family historians in Tasmania; undergraduates and school-students in both the UK and Australia. This kind of ambitious film-making and digital exhibition project is not without risk but has the potential to create a lasting and significant impact in both the UK and Australia.
Planned Impact
Who might benefit from this research? We have set this out (below) as a ripple-out activity - the first benefits of this collaboration will be felt by academics, but (as stated below) we intend for the impact-ripple to spread to other communities.
Academics - This is a collaboration between experienced researchers who emerge from a number of disciplines, so we should attract an academic audience; and the project will serve as a model for interdisciplinary impact-creation which could disseminate good practice to the academic community. Participatory and community film-making techniques developed by Cooke in the UK may act as a model for Australian film-students; similarly, Wilkinson is a leading digital anthropologist and her work and techniques could increase capacity for this kind of work in Tasmania and Western Australia; and, not least, this academic team will benefit from engagement with cultural and heritage managers, and from working with indigenous communities in Australia. However, this is not a research project, and it is not primarily designed to impact upon the academic sector.
Heritage and cultural bodies - The exhibition at Hobart, and the film created in Fremantle will increase foot-fall, and public awareness of heritage assets, creating new audiences for their institutions. These will generate commercial gains, but we would also expect there to be a deeper level of beneficial engagement (particularly for Fremantle Prison) in helping the Western Australia Heritage Body to increase their engagement with indigenous communities (part of their mission statement).
NGOs/Activist groups/Working class and indigenous communities - the resources created (documentary films, briefing papers, factsheets, online clips, etc) will be made available to prison reform, indigenous social justice, and human rights groups to use in their campaigns. The resources will be powerful tools that can be wielded by campaigning bodies to challenge contemporary criminal justice policies, although the creation of higher levels of social justice is by no means an easy or an immediate task - our intention is that we will create a legacy of impact that will increase social justice in the Australian criminal justice system in the years after the funded-part of the project has concluded.
General public - we envisage that a large number of people will visit the Hobart Penitentiary exhibition, attend one of the free public lectures, or view one of the filmed documentaries. Most significantly we will provide for the public, accessible information on the lives of prisoners, and the experiences of indigenous and working-class communities in historic and modern-day Australia. We will therefore inform public sensibilities, challenge orthodox views, and create a new level of understanding about the challenges that members of marginalised communities cope with and overcome.
Academics - This is a collaboration between experienced researchers who emerge from a number of disciplines, so we should attract an academic audience; and the project will serve as a model for interdisciplinary impact-creation which could disseminate good practice to the academic community. Participatory and community film-making techniques developed by Cooke in the UK may act as a model for Australian film-students; similarly, Wilkinson is a leading digital anthropologist and her work and techniques could increase capacity for this kind of work in Tasmania and Western Australia; and, not least, this academic team will benefit from engagement with cultural and heritage managers, and from working with indigenous communities in Australia. However, this is not a research project, and it is not primarily designed to impact upon the academic sector.
Heritage and cultural bodies - The exhibition at Hobart, and the film created in Fremantle will increase foot-fall, and public awareness of heritage assets, creating new audiences for their institutions. These will generate commercial gains, but we would also expect there to be a deeper level of beneficial engagement (particularly for Fremantle Prison) in helping the Western Australia Heritage Body to increase their engagement with indigenous communities (part of their mission statement).
NGOs/Activist groups/Working class and indigenous communities - the resources created (documentary films, briefing papers, factsheets, online clips, etc) will be made available to prison reform, indigenous social justice, and human rights groups to use in their campaigns. The resources will be powerful tools that can be wielded by campaigning bodies to challenge contemporary criminal justice policies, although the creation of higher levels of social justice is by no means an easy or an immediate task - our intention is that we will create a legacy of impact that will increase social justice in the Australian criminal justice system in the years after the funded-part of the project has concluded.
General public - we envisage that a large number of people will visit the Hobart Penitentiary exhibition, attend one of the free public lectures, or view one of the filmed documentaries. Most significantly we will provide for the public, accessible information on the lives of prisoners, and the experiences of indigenous and working-class communities in historic and modern-day Australia. We will therefore inform public sensibilities, challenge orthodox views, and create a new level of understanding about the challenges that members of marginalised communities cope with and overcome.
Organisations
Title | Art of Fremantle Prison |
Description | A 20 minute video which reveals the history of wall murals in the prison and the lives of their creators. |
Type Of Art | Film/Video/Animation |
Year Produced | 2020 |
Impact | The film has gained 11 laurels, and has won prizes from film festivals. It will be launched at Fremantle Prison attended by relatives of the indigenous artists who created the murals. It will form part of the permanent exhibitions at the prison. |
Title | Convict Lives |
Description | Exhibition at Liverpool Metropolitan Cathedral |
Type Of Art | Artistic/Creative Exhibition |
Year Produced | 2019 |
Impact | Over 3000 people visited this exhibition (visitors from UK and Europe) |
Title | Convicts |
Description | Exhibition at Hobart Penitentiary Church |
Type Of Art | Artwork |
Year Produced | 2019 |
Impact | The exhibition became a Top Ten Attraction for Tasmania. Following the increase in footfall, the temporary exhibition became permanent at the request of National Trust Tasmania |
Description | National Trust Australia to construct a temporary exhibition at UNESCO world-heritage-site, Hobart Penitentiary Chapel, Tasmania. The co-produced exhibition and accompanying public lectures focused on the improvement of social policy towards offenders ("a stunning successone of the most popular historic experiences in Hobart"). Following the 45% increase in footfall, the exhibition was made permanent and still attracts thousands of visitors. Using some of the existing images with new images of US convicts, an online exhibition was held at the Willson Center (part of the Uni. of Georgia which hosts exhibitions for students and general public), launched by an online public lecture on unconscious bias. As a result of this exhibition, Godfrey collaborated with Alabama Department of Archives & History to digitize records of African American prisoners and discussed how to exhibit African American prisoner stories with Minnesota Museum. The documentary film made by Godfrey and Cooke was launched at Freemantle Prison, and has now garnered eleven awards/laurels at international film shows. |
First Year Of Impact | 2020 |
Sector | Creative Economy,Education,Leisure Activities, including Sports, Recreation and Tourism,Culture, Heritage, Museums and Collections |
Impact Types | Cultural,Societal,Economic |
Description | Armidale newspaper interview on convicts |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A broadcast e.g. TV/radio/film/podcast (other than news/press) |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Regional |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | Interview for regional newspaper |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
Description | Interview on ABC Radio, 22nd July 2019 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A broadcast e.g. TV/radio/film/podcast (other than news/press) |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | Interview on convicts and heritage on national broadcaster |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
Description | Interview on national ABC Radio's "Lateline", 15th August 2019 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A broadcast e.g. TV/radio/film/podcast (other than news/press) |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | Interview and discussion with Australia's National Broadcaster on their main news discussion programme. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
Description | Sunrise, Channel 9 (launch of Hobart exhibition) |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A broadcast e.g. TV/radio/film/podcast (other than news/press) |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | To discuss launch of the Convicts Exhibition |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |