Prison art branches out

Artist paid to brighten up walls of new Lara jail TELL US WHAT YOU THINK OF YOUR MONEY BEING USED TO FUND THE PRISON ART PROJECT:

A PRISON art project has been rolled out at Lara’s new $100 million Karreenga Corrections Facility that currently houses medium-security male prisoners.

The project sees three larger-then-life murals commissioned by Corrections Victoria painted on the centre walls by Melbourne-based artist Paul Sonsie (pictured right), who is known for his large-scale artwork.

The centre officially opened on September 16 and is an annex of the Marngoneet prison, which is set to be downgraded to a low-security prison in November.

Sonsie said the works were designed to be hopeful and calming.

“They wanted black and white, which I think was the whole (British graffiti artist) Banksy influence,” he said.

“It was interesting designing them because we had to have a sense of hope and something that was thoughtprovoking, also nothing too political or that would date over time.”

Sonsie said this project was a first for him.

“I love to create artwork in the public realm and in large scale,” he said.

“You can really change a whole space with art which makes the prison quite a unique project.”

A Corrections Victoria spokesman said two of the pieces were in visitors’ areas and were designed to create a more welcoming environment for families.

“Corrections Victoria commissioned Mr Sonsie to create the murals due to the high quality of his art,” he said.

“Mr Sonsie is also a graduate of Box Hill Institute, the TAFE that is delivering education programs at Karreenga.

“The artwork also encourages prisoners to reflect on having rehabilitative goals, and to think about the importance of reintegrating into society after they complete their sentences,” he said.