From prison to paragon: These beautiful buildings were once jails

Tiffany Ap, CNN
2 minute read
Updated 5:57 AM EST, Thu February 9, 2017
Australia's Pentridge Prison housed some of the nation's most notorious criminals -- from outlaw Ned Kelly to Ronald Ryan, who was the last man to be executed in the country. But a private buyer took over the site in 2013 and is changing it into a mixed-used residential and commercial development, complete with a luxury Adina Apartment Hotel.
Pentridge Prison, Melbourne, Australia —
Australia's Pentridge Prison housed some of the nation's most notorious criminals -- from outlaw Ned Kelly to Ronald Ryan, who was the last man to be executed in the country. But a private buyer took over the site in 2013 and is changing it into a mixed-used residential and commercial development, complete with a luxury Adina Apartment Hotel.
Adina
The Hotel, in the Victorian capital of Melbourne, will have 120 apartments and studios designed by Cox Architecture and will retain some of the original jail cells.
Pentridge Prison, Malbourne, Australia —
The Hotel, in the Victorian capital of Melbourne, will have 120 apartments and studios designed by Cox Architecture and will retain some of the original jail cells.
Adina
An artist's impression of what the precinct will look like once completed. The area is located north of Melbourne's central business district.
Pentridge Prison, Malbourne, Australia —
An artist's impression of what the precinct will look like once completed. The area is located north of Melbourne's central business district.
Pentridge Coburg
The bright white interiors and blond timbers of the Jury cafe, located in the new Pentridge Prison redevelopment, sit in stark contrast to its dark past as an infamous prison.
Pentridge Prison, Malbourne, Australia —
The bright white interiors and blond timbers of the Jury cafe, located in the new Pentridge Prison redevelopment, sit in stark contrast to its dark past as an infamous prison.
Biasol
The revamp of this prison, Convent of the Penitents, in Louviers, France into a music school won several awards when it was finished in 2012.
Convent of the Penitents, Louviers, France —
The revamp of this prison, Convent of the Penitents, in Louviers, France into a music school won several awards when it was finished in 2012.
Opus 5
A concert hall sits above its north wing. Unlike with some other prison transformation projects, characteristics of the former structure are still well preserved.
Convent of the Penitents, Louviers, France —
A concert hall sits above its north wing. Unlike with some other prison transformation projects, characteristics of the former structure are still well preserved.
B.Decaris/opus 35
A rendering of what the prison used to look like before its modern additions.
Convent of the Penitents, Louviers, France —
A rendering of what the prison used to look like before its modern additions.
opus 35
The exterior of the hotel. The venue keeps a landscaped garden whose original purpose was an exercise yard for prisoners. At its peak, it housed 2,000.
Four Seasons Hotel, Istanbul, Turkey —
The exterior of the hotel. The venue keeps a landscaped garden whose original purpose was an exercise yard for prisoners. At its peak, it housed 2,000.
Four Seasons
The Four Seasons Hotel in Istanbul's historic Sultanahmet neighborhood set up its home in what used to be the city's jail to take advantage of its prime location near the Hagia Sofia and Blue Mosque.
Four Seasons Hotel, Istanbul, Turkey —
The Four Seasons Hotel in Istanbul's historic Sultanahmet neighborhood set up its home in what used to be the city's jail to take advantage of its prime location near the Hagia Sofia and Blue Mosque.
Four Seasons
Small traces can still be seen from its penal past. One marble pillar still bears an inmate's inscription while the building's minarets were built to cover old watchtowers.
Four Seasons Hotel, Istanbul, Turkey —
Small traces can still be seen from its penal past. One marble pillar still bears an inmate's inscription while the building's minarets were built to cover old watchtowers.
Four Seasons
This former prison in Palencia, Spain was turned into a center for culture and the arts.
Centro Civico, Palencia, Spain —
This former prison in Palencia, Spain was turned into a center for culture and the arts.
Exit Architects
The center features an auditorium, library as well as classrooms in an airy design by Exit Architects.
Centro Civico, Palencia, Spain —
The center features an auditorium, library as well as classrooms in an airy design by Exit Architects.
Exit Architects
The architects introduced more natural light in the building by removing old tiles and adding glass structures.
Centro Civico, Palencia, Spain —
The architects introduced more natural light in the building by removing old tiles and adding glass structures.
Exit Architects
Although it's hard to tell from its stately looking exterior, heritage boutique hotel Hullet House used to be the city's Marine Police Headquarters jail cells, which were built in 1881.
Hullett House, Hong Kong —
Although it's hard to tell from its stately looking exterior, heritage boutique hotel Hullet House used to be the city's Marine Police Headquarters jail cells, which were built in 1881.
Hullett House
Called "Gong Guan" in Chinese, the building now also houses restaurants and shops and features a unique combination of colonial and modern architectural elements.
Hullett House, Hong Kong —
Called "Gong Guan" in Chinese, the building now also houses restaurants and shops and features a unique combination of colonial and modern architectural elements.
Hullett House
Located near the Star Ferry, in Kowloon's Tsim Sha Tsui district, the building includes a bar -- the Mariner's Rest -- which is named after the jail's original drinking venue that used to host visiting seamen and working policemen.
Hullett House, Hong Kong —
Located near the Star Ferry, in Kowloon's Tsim Sha Tsui district, the building includes a bar -- the Mariner's Rest -- which is named after the jail's original drinking venue that used to host visiting seamen and working policemen.
Hullett House
The bar has incorporated two of the jail's original cells into its design, where its newest patrons can enjoy a pint.
Hullett House, Hong Kong —
The bar has incorporated two of the jail's original cells into its design, where its newest patrons can enjoy a pint.
Hullett House
A former prison in Reading, England has been turned into a tribute to its most famous inmate -- Oscar Wilde. The exhibition includes archive material from the prison and works by acclaimed artists including Steve McQueen, Nan Goldin and Marlene Dumas.
Reading Prison, Reading, England —
A former prison in Reading, England has been turned into a tribute to its most famous inmate -- Oscar Wilde. The exhibition includes archive material from the prison and works by acclaimed artists including Steve McQueen, Nan Goldin and Marlene Dumas.
Dan Kitwood/Getty Images Europe/Getty Images
The prison cell door of former inmate and world-famous author, Oscar Wilde. Wilde -- who was imprisoned for his homosexuality -- spent two years in the prison from 1895, one of which was in solitary confinement.
Reading Prison, Reading, England —
The prison cell door of former inmate and world-famous author, Oscar Wilde. Wilde -- who was imprisoned for his homosexuality -- spent two years in the prison from 1895, one of which was in solitary confinement.
Dan Kitwood/Getty Images Europe/Getty Images
Wilde wrote De Profundis, one of the world's most famous love letters, to his lover Lord Alfred Douglas while he was imprisoned. The Artangel exhibition is the first time the former gaol has been opened to the public.
Reading Prison, Reading, England —
Wilde wrote De Profundis, one of the world's most famous love letters, to his lover Lord Alfred Douglas while he was imprisoned. The Artangel exhibition is the first time the former gaol has been opened to the public.
Dan Kitwood/Getty Images Europe/Getty Images
Former prisons transformed for a second lease on life

Story highlights

Former jails have been transformed into into everything from luxury hotels to schools

Despite a less than salubrious past, people seem more than happy to take up in these old jail spaces

CNN  — 

Jails are not the first place people typically look to for design inspiration. For the most part they are brutalist, utilitarian blocks that are built to house row after row of prison cells and which offer altogether dismal living conditions.

How Germany's wartime bunkers are being reborn

But a few disused penitentiaries have had their potential unlocked by redevelopers – and in these second leases on life, former jails have been transformed into everything from luxury hotels to schools, shopping complexes, or even a film lot.

One 18th-century jail in Louviers, France, has been reincarnated as an elegant music academy. Its award-winning design features a modern glass orchestra hall juxtaposed above its classical stone facade.

Meanwhile, the shuttered Arthur Kill Correctional Facility on Staten Island in New York is in the process of becoming a studio for TV and film production in the hopes that celebrities, not convicts, will one day walk its grounds.

Are these the world's most inspirational buildings?

More and more former prison sites are being opened up to redevelopment in the US, thanks in no small part to the government’s decision to move away from controversial for-profit prisons. The announcement in August that the US federal government would stop using private operators is expected to force many private facilities to close. That’s alongside lower overall incarceration rates, that stem from a rejection of the old 1990’s “tough on crime” stance.

Despite a less than salubrious past, people seem more than happy to take up in these old jail spaces – perhaps because in many instances, you wouldn’t have been in such bad company.

Visitors to Reading Prison in England, which has been opened to the public for the first time this September as an exhibition space, can see where Oscar Wilde once made his bed. The playwright served out a two-year sentence for “gross indecency” for his relationship with another man.

Palaces of inspiration: How architecture feeds the imagination of art

Pentridge Prison in Australia guarded some of the nation’s most notorious criminals – including the legendary outlawed ‘bushranger’ Ned Kelly – but it’s now being re-envisioned as a vibrant residential and commercial hub in Melbourne.

In the Turkish capital of Istanbul, the Sultanahmet ‘Capital City Murder’ Jail – which is now a luxurious Four Seasons Hotel – had its fifth section reserved for famous personages such as poet Nazim Hikmet and satirist Aziz Nesin. Somewhat foreshadowing its destiny as hotel accommodation, the prison was ironically referred to as “The Hilton”.

Take a look through the gallery above to see creative examples of former prison spaces now rehabilitated.