Art Featured At Research In Corrections Conference

Artwork by people in prisons and a film screening about a successful theatre programme in a maximum-security prison in the United States will feature at the inaugural International Research in Corrections Conference in Auckland from 2 to 5 March.

More than 250 delegates from New Zealand and internationally, including researchers, practitioners, policymakers and people with experience of imprisonment, will attend the four-day conference.

It is hosted by the International Corrections and Prisons Association (ICPA) and Ara Poutama Aotearoa Department of Corrections, which contracts Arts Access Aotearoa to provide an arts advisory service. Arts Access Aotearoa will facilitate the arts activity at the conference.

Find out more about the conference

Neil Wallace, Kaiwhakahuri Hurihanga Arts and Justice Advisor at Arts Access Aotearoa, says the conference represents a significant step forward in connecting research to practical application in correctional systems around the world.

“This is a chance to demonstrate how arts, justice and the voices of those directly impacted by incarceration can sit alongside each other at the heart of real change,” Neil says.

Arts Access Aotearoa and tertiary institution The Learning Connexion will have booths displaying artwork throughout the conference. Based in the Hutt Valley, The Learning Connexion delivers distance-learning study in art and creativity to all but one of the prisons around the country.

“The work on display reflects commitment, discipline and growth,” Neil says. “It also reflects people’s capacity to contribute positively.”

Neil says presenting artwork at a research-focused conference signals that the role of arts programmes in prisons has a place in evidence-based discussions.

“Research is essential and here in Aotearoa, we are building a body of research to complement what’s available overseas,” he says. “At the conference, the arts are part of a wider conversation about what supports rehabilitation and safer communities.”

The conference theme is “What Works in Corrections: Research Driving Safe Environments, Rehabilitation and Reintegration”.

“If we’re serious about understanding what works in correctional settings, we need to consider the full range of evidence,” Neil says. “This includes the outcomes we see through sustained engagement in arts programmes.”

In addition to the display booths, Arts Access Aotearoa will host a special screening of “Sing Sing”, a feature film centred on a theatre programme inside the maximum-security Sing Sing Correctional Facility in New York state.

The event will include a short panel discussion, facilitated by Neil Wallace and including Dr Pooneh Torabian (Otago University), Deborah Phillips (rāranga artist), Mark Lang (whakairo artist) and Zak Devey (Youth Arts New Zealand).

The screening is being held as a fundraiser for Arts Access Aotearoa, supporting its work with Ara Poutama Aotearoa.

“In a conference focused on systems and outcomes, the artwork display and film highlight how structured creative programmes can contribute to wellbeing, identity and confidence — factors that research increasingly recognises as relevant to rehabilitation,” Neil says.

Delegates attending the conference will have opportunities to connect with international colleagues, share research findings and explore approaches to creating safer correctional environments.

The programme includes sessions on institutional design, community transition and evidence-based rehabilitation initiatives.

Tickets for the Sing Sing screening at the Capitol Cinema, starting at 7pm on 4 March are available online. Book now

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