We judge a society by the state of its prisons, as stated by authors like Nelson Mandela, Albert Camus, or Dostoievski… But within the paradigm of a society which so often avoids facing its own problems, who would want to look at these places; and, above all, who would want to look at the men and women who are imprisoned?
Breaking the Bars is a programme that aims to showcase the prison-world and its operational aspects, through a cycle of films and debates, concerts, an exhibition, and the cycle’s extension to the establishment of the prisons of Linhó and Tires. As Angela Davis and Gina Dent state in their abolitionist project, in order to create a critical view it's necessary to know and get closer to the reality one is critical about. The ideal would be a prison-free society - but how to imagine this scenario without knowing what actually happens behind the prison walls?
Arts may provide a way to bring both worlds together, through words, feelings and senses. This is one of the main goals throughout this programmed cycle.