The prison of the former Oranje-Nassau grounds in the centre of Heerlenhas been designed from the vantage point of an 'archaeology in reverse',with new layers continually being projected onto the existing ones. Thisapproach leaves the past intact and preserves us from loss of memory.

This graduation project was prompted by a poem by Paul Celan. One aspectof the project was to research the links between the site, the local miningindustry and the world of imprisonment were researched. The idea of buildinga prison has been in the air since the arrival of the mining industry, thereason why Heerlen is there at all. This prison then is Heerlen's 'inversecity wall', a monument, a tombstone: 'Heerlen is imprisoned'.

Place of education: TU Eindhoven
Tutors: Bert Dirrix, Gerard van Zeijl & Jan Westra
Specialization: architecture