On Sept. 4, Dr. Rita Shah, assistant professor of sociology, opened her new photo exhibit “Prison or Slave Castle?” to the Elizabethtown College community. Upon arrival, Shah explained to the students what the exhibit was about and why she had decided to undertake the project.
Shah is a criminologist whose interests lie within studying and questioning how and why we think about corrections and the correctional system as we do. Being an avid fan of photography, particularly with architectural details and landscapes, she put her two interests together and created an exhibit that demonstrated both of her combined specialties. She hoped to use the look and feel of correctional spaces captured within her photography to better understand how they are situated within society.
Places of confinement play a large role in life, whether directly or indirectly, and therefore go unnoticed more often than not. These places are usually hidden from view or regularly ignored because of their constant presence. That is why Shah picked two locations of confinement located in the heart of active communities. The two buildings were built 350 years apart from each other, both now being converted into historical museums, which would make one imagine they are very different from each other, one having been a place where those considered property were held and the other a holding cell for those deemed redeemable by society. While their purposes are arguably different, the two buildings have a similar look and feel to them. Thus, it raises the question of similar architectural features of various locations of imprisonment and how they may or may not have evolved over time to reflect society’s opinion of confinement.
Shah made it very clear as to how the exhibit is to appear. The first set of photographs exhibits various entrance gates to each of the facilities while the remaining sets exemplify cell bars and hallways found within each building. This is done to give the impression to viewers of actually being within a place of imprisonment and exemplify an outline of what it would be like to walk through one. Numbered counter-clockwise, students are given a booklet where they are asked to guess whether the photo belongs to Elmina Castle, built in Ghana in 1482 and one of the most important sites of the Atlantic Slave Trade, or Eastern State Penitentiary, built in Philadelphia in 1829 and considered the world’s first true penitentiary.
While the two facilities were built of very different means, the photos are difficult to distinguish between, making students consider and question why the two may look so similar yet house two variably different types of people. The exhibit seeks to provoke the mind and allow students to ask questions, which Shah is open to answer and discuss during the process.
After marking their answers, students may flip through their booklets where they will find a smaller version of each picture hung within the exhibit and whether it belongs to Elmina Castle or Eastern State Penitentiary, as well as a short description of each picture. This allows students to actively interact with the exhibit. At the end of the exhibit, students may fill out a survey which lets them reflect on their experience as well as offer to meet with Shah for a follow up meeting which may aid her in continual research on the topic presented.
The exhibit is open to the student body throughout the academic year, and students may view the exhibit any time the room is not in use. Anyone who is not a student or faculty or staff member must make an appointment before visiting.
