Parrhesia and Prison

A prisoner is rarely in a position to engage in dialogue with society regarding his or her experience of prison as it is lived. Such conversations require parrhesia - ‘speaking one’s mind’ or ‘fearless speech’—on the one hand and listening on the other. Working as a teacher and artist with prisoners for over ten years, video-artist/filmmaker Jonathan Cummins aimed to create a space, which was autonomous to the gaze of the prison, a place where participants were free to speak and enquire on their terms. What emerged was a collaborative process where the balance of knowledge and its framing relied on the prisoner. The films that developed from this engagement offer us new insights about prison and prisoner in a process that positions prisoner as citizen.