Argentina’s Mobile Lab Rethinks Justice Through Art and Activism
buenos Aires, Argentina – A groundbreaking initiative in Buenos Aires is challenging conventional notions of justice by exploring transformative approaches within the prison system, with a particular focus on female-identifying and LGBTQIA+ individuals. The Prince Claus Fund’s Mobile Lab, co-curated by acclaimed writer, poet, and editor María Medrano, alongside the prison abolition collective YoNoFui, has orchestrated a series of cultural events, workshops, performances, and a public parliament session aimed at fostering dialog and envisioning a more equitable future.
The 2023 Mobile Lab Argentina program delves into how societal connections can be reimagined, specifically addressing the experiences of incarcerated and formerly incarcerated individuals from marginalized communities. A central objective is too explore the potential for prisons to evolve into environments that are not only productive but also nurturing, thereby creating new opportunities for those within and beyond prison walls and stimulating critical discourse on systemic change.
The Lab has convened a diverse group of participants, including 2021 seed Awardees Rubén Elías Barrios Rodríguez, Julia Cohen Ribeiro, and Bruno Almada Comas, and also 2022 Seed Awardees Luanda, lina Lasso, David amado, and Alexis Villanueva Niebles. Esteemed figures contributing to the program include critically acclaimed artistic director Keng Sen Ong, writer and lesbian queer activist val flores, queer activist and art history professor Nicolas Cuello, sociologist and essayist María Pía López, and fashion designer and 2020 Prince Claus Laureate Diamantina Arcoiris, among others.
This initiative underscores a critical examination of justice systems often perceived as perpetuating classism, racism, capitalism, and patriarchy, leading to disproportionately severe consequences for marginalized populations. By centering art, culture, and community dialogue, the Mobile Lab seeks to foster a paradigm shift towards restorative and rehabilitative practices.
