BERGEN COUNTY JAIL - RELEASE
Maren Roscher

Old Bergen County jail is located in the middle of the city center. The building was built in 1876 as a result of the prison act and was strongly inspired of the type drawings, leading to three floors with 41 cells. These type drawings were designed according to the Philadelphia model; with one cell per person with individual wc, shower and air yards. These prisons were usually placed at a big site where the form was freer and drawn out as an instrument for prison guards to have an overview. Old Bergen county jail is located at a smaller site and drawn into a block, where they placed the courthouse, fire station and city hall in the same block together with the jail. The intention was to create a natural meeting point, but it was never used as one. Maybe it was because of the level of seriousness that took place inside the buildings. Today this block of old buildings is protected as part of the cultural identity of Bergen, soon to become museums or left as a memory for cultural heritage. The question throughout the process has been how do I free the prison from the tight straitjacket it’s in today and release the building in itself.

In the process of undressing the prison and getting to know it, I have played with all kinds of reversals and looked for what the building wants. Going from being an instrument to functioning as an organ. By spilling out the floors of the prison into the surroundings, the building starts to interact with the neighbouring streets. Allowing the spilled floors to become a new terrain that gives freedom to move from outside to inside in a seamless transition, giving the place a whole new character. The public space outside will be a place where silence is kept, sheltered from the stressful city surroundings. Slowing down the pace, but also slowing down time – a way of having more time - a reverse to what a prisoner wishes for.