Project: Inside the Big House

Students at Antonelli Institute visit Eastern State Penitentiary

Eastern State Penitentiary (ESP), once the most famous and expensive prison in the United States, resembled more of a fortress during the Renaissance than a penitentiary that protected society from the likes of "Slick Willie" Sutton and even Al Capone. Today, ESP stands in ruin, a haunting world of crumbling cell blocks and empty guard towers.

Upon entering the massive structure, which at one time kept all of its 1,200-plus inmates in solitary confinement, you understand why more than half of its tenants eventually went insane. Designed like the spokes of a wheel, its endless corridors feed off of its centralized core - an effective way to monitor inmates and a design that would become a blueprint for other penitentiaries around the world. When it opened in 1829, it had amenities not even found in the White House - running water and centralized heat, for example. For these reasons it is estimated that more than 300 prisons around the world were influenced directly or indirectly by ESP's system of reform and innovative architecture.

This was the backdrop for students at Antonelli Institute who spent the day uncovering some of the history of this once notorious institution for social reform. The students were able to access parts of the prison that are off limits to daily visitors which added a new and unique perspective to the picture story. The Warden's office (aka the Chaplain's office) and the Tower where guards cautiously stood watch were the two exclusive locations students were permitted to photograph.

We ate lunch on the Sports Field inside the prison walls - a small triangular space used by inmates to play baseball, football, handball, and bocce. The prison's outer stone wall served as the homerun fence and mimicked the Green Monster at Fenway Park. As I looked around I could almost hear some of the muddled conversations among the prisoners as they were given their daily two hour regiment of fresh air and exercise.

Students explored every nook and cranny within the prison walls, capturing subtle nuances that would give you the viewer, a sense of isolation the prisoners faced every day.

The students couldn't wait to get back to meet with Julieanne and import their photographs into Photoshop Lightroom. The process of importing, editing and "developing" the photos was something they really enjoyed and it was great to see how they helped each other with tough editing decisions. When it came time to select the final images for the portfolio, Colin and Julieanne led the team in a critique session. As with previous schools the students found this exercise to be extremely educational and a lot of fun.

The overall project really inspired the students to see the world from a new perspective and promoted aspirations of going from the Big House to the Big Time.