Prison art work is a type of work that requires different rules and possibilities in terms of establishing contact, freedom of movement, opening certain topics and thinking carefully on its ethical dimensions, as well as keeping in mind the professional obligation to keep information, that artists might receive or the insights they gain while working in prison space, confidential. Before they could start any artwork in prison space, artists involved in the project need to go through proper education. Through certain forms of education, artists need to understand that working in a prison space requires not only a different approach to work than the one they are used to, but also a different approach to the people they will encounter while working in that space. The reasons for this belief are found in the experiences of previous projects. Lack of familiarity with the way of working and behaving often causes the artist to be obstinate. That behavior then results in superficiality and inappropriate work. Resistance to learn something or apply something that they have been suggested has led us to think about the need to carry out a project where artists would undergo certain forms of education before working in prison. Continuing on all the facts, the idea has been developed to produce and publish two educational books (manuals) explaining and displaying different aspects of art work in the prison. Projects to promote education in prisons, through the search for professional associates, the exchange of knowledge and the dissemination of good practice, have been implemented in the European area for a long time. The reason for the transnational implementation of the project is the fact that both the applicant and the project partners will use the specific knowledge and expertise that each participant brings to the project. By educating the prison system's expert staff about this domain of artistic activity, which actually falls into the scientific field of medicine and we can say psychology, we are placing it in the area of one of the important lifelong literacy processes. This type of education is important because in this way the form of acting through the arts is more successfully embedded, on an equal footing with other skills (using art therapies and working with prisoners) in the penal / prison community. For artists, the effect we expect is to increase understanding of the needs of the community in which they perform the artistic interventions and to respond better to the needs of that community. The long-term effect is to increase artist interest in participating in projects related to prison systems. Following the implementation of the project at the partnership level, the results of the project will be used to: educate artists interested in the subject of painting and aesthetization of prison premises, educate employees in prison systems on the effects of art on behaviour and stay in prison, and educate students during their studies. All materials produced by the project will be fully available to the public as follows: the books will be uploaded to the ISSU database, where the HDLU places links to catalogs, which are then made available to the public for reading and download. We plan to update the books over time, in line with the progress of projects in prison systems and the experiences we will gain over time, and we also intend to supplement the books so that they can be applied to hospital facilities. The long-term plan is to create a catalog of interventions performed so far in short-text brochures, which can then be placed in hospital waiting rooms, so that patients can gain insight into the purpose of artistic initiatives. Brochures will also be developed for prison interventions and made available to prison systems to provide prisoners with insight and information on intervention projects and results.
In the first book, the content of which is intended for artists who are interested in working in the prison space, we wanted to consolidate educational materials on certain "soft" skills and on ways of behaving and dealing with staff, employees of the prison system and prisoners. The second book is intended primarily for staff employed in the prison system, but also for the general public, with the aim of raising awareness of the importance of artistic work in atypical spaces (prisons, hospitals, barracks...) and the effects of such and similar projects (therapeutic and aesthetic effects on the observer). The reason why we felt that the publication of these books is very necessary is the experiences we gained "on the ground" during the implementation of projects in the prison area. Lack of familiarity with the way of working and behavior often causes stubbornness in artists, which then results in superficiality and inappropriate works. The resistance that prison employees know how to provide in the field is sometimes reflected in comments devaluing artistic creations. The majority of the general public also rejects such projects due to misunderstanding and lack of insight (lack of knowledge) into the positive effects of the project.
Artistic work in prison belongs to a type of work that dictates different rules and possibilities. However, before starting to paint the prison area, the artists - participants in the project are in dire need of education. Through certain forms of education, artists should understand that working in a prison requires a different approach to work than the one they are used to, but also a different approach to the people they will meet while working in that space. We find the reasons for such a belief in the experiences from previous projects. Lack of familiarity with the way of working and behavior often causes stubbornness in artists. This then results in superficiality and inappropriate works. The resistance to learn something or to apply something they are directed to, led us to think about the need to implement a project in which artists would undergo certain forms of education before working in prison. From this, the idea developed to create and publish two educational books (manuals) in which different aspects of artistic work in the prison area will be explained and presented.