Thursday 26 April

A Big Night Out … In Prison

The next time your friends ask “What are you doing next Friday night?”, you could respond with “ Paying to go to prison”. You’ll be talking about a rare opportunity on 4 May to go into jail empty-handed and leave a few hours later with a work of art. Ruia is the name of a charity fundraiser art auction to be held at Christchurch Men’s Prison, featuring artworks, sculptures and woodcarvings by 80 inmates of Canterbury prisons.

The function takes its name from a Maori proverb Ruia taitea, kia tu ko taikaka anake, which means ‘strip away the sapwood until only the heartwood remains’. Project Manager Katey Gibling says prisoners were invited to consider the theme and reflect it in their works.

“The 140 works are truly amazing and reveal some emerging artists who could very well make an income from those talents outside prison,” she says.

The reality is prisoners cannot earn money during their sentence, so the proceeds from the art auction will go to the Family Help Trust, an organisation which works with the infants and children of high-risk Canterbury families, including those with criminal offending in their backgrounds. “Part of the preparation for the project was talking to the prisoners about the Family Help Trust”, says Ms Gibling. “Some of the prisoners said if their family had the kind of support the trust offers, they might not be where they are today.

“The Family Help Trust understands the philosophies and the challenges of rehabilitation and reintegration, so our two organisations have much in common.

“We all saw the value of the project and the prisoners have learnt a lot about themselves and their artistic talents. One told me his artwork for the auction made him feel he had done something worthwhile and he liked the feeling of making a contribution.”

Though the raw materials for the project were donated, Ms Gibling says two prisoners felt so strongly about the project they insisted on using several weeks’ allowance for their materials.

“They get $2.50 a week and use it for personal items, so using it for their art materials meant a significant change in their thinking,” she says.

The Corrections Department is hoping this auction will change attitudes among some of the 250 people who attend the event, too.

Anyone wanting to attend will have to front up in person to the Family Help Trust, pay $40, supply ID, prove they’re over 18 years old, and go through a security check … and that’s just to buy the ticket.

On the evening of May 4, when they arrive at prison they’ll go through the standard entry procedure – leaving all possessions behind them, slowly passing drug dogs and sensors while being checked out by prison staff, one by one.

“It is a disempowering experience similar to those the prisoners go through,” says Ms Gibling.

“It will give people an understanding of our routines, just as the walk through the prison to the gymnasium for the auction will give them a view of the inside of a prison. We’re comfortable with people coming to view the prison in this way – though of course we hope they’ll buy a piece of art while they’re here.”

ENDS

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