En busca de la Ciudad Penitenciaria. Metáfora y materializaciones en los proyectos de reforma carcelaria del Estado Novo (Rio de Janeiro, 1937-1945)

Abstract

In 1937 was published a prison reform Project for the brasilian capital entitled Cidade Penitenciária do Rio de Janeiro. From an architectural point of view, this “prison-city” did not present differences with its predecessors nor did it present itself as an urbanization. The proposal of its author, the architect Adelardo Caiuby, gathered his experience as creator of the São Paulo Model Leprosário (1918) whose main idea was that the patients, confined for a long time in the hospital, lead a life similar to the one they had out of isolation. That idea – in theory – was the one that Caiuby tried to transfer to the penitentiary sphere, although he finally did it with a traditional architectural prison design. In this paper we will delve into the meanings of the city metaphor that some state agents believed appropriate to solve prison problems. What were the conditions like in the federal district penitentiaries in 1930? Who were the agents in charge of finding solutions? What experiences did they have? What was the specific operating proposal for that city? How was it different from other existing prisons? These are some of the questions that guide this work.

Keywords

• Rio de Janeiro
• Penitentiary City
• prison reform
• Estado Novo
• prison metaphors