The project A hope called work: two open doors between prison and the city by Stefano Boeri Architetti is developed within the framework of the international initiative Porte della Speranza (Gates of hope), promoted by the Fondazione Pontificia Gravissimum Educationis of the Dicastery for Culture and Education of the Holy See. The initiative envisages the realization of a series of “author-designed doors” in eight Italian and two Portuguese prisons.

Conceived through direct dialogue with prison communities, the project takes the form of a civic and symbolic architectural device aimed at redefining the relationship between the prison and the city of Brescia. The Porta della Speranza by Stefano Boeri Architetti is located within the “Canton Mombello” detention facility—one of the most overcrowded prisons in Italy—and confronts the issue of employment as a key driver of dignity, opportunity, and re-entry into society.

The Porta della Speranza is conceived as a threshold rather than a barrier. Inside the prison, it is installed within the panopticon, becoming a permanent interface dedicated to employment, education, and vocational training opportunities for inmates. One of the door leaves is transformed into a large digital display that continuously updates information on job offers, training programs, internships, and collaborations proposed by local companies and social cooperatives, both within and beyond the penitentiary system.

This gesture is mirrored by the installation of an identical door in Piazzale Arnaldo, one of the city’s most vibrant public spaces. Here, the door opens toward the city, sharing not only employment opportunities but also knowledge about the prison system: conditions of detention, the phenomenon of overcrowding, and the daily—often invisible—work carried out by prison staff, healthcare professionals, volunteers, local businesses, and the inmates themselves through cultural and artistic initiatives.

Although physically separate, the two doors—each composed of two wooden leaves measuring 3 meters in height and 1.5 meters in width—constitute a single architectural and civic system. Together, they activate a dual movement—from the city toward the prison and from the prison toward the city—enabling the circulation of information, opportunities, projects, and aspirations beyond institutional boundaries. In compliance with penitentiary regulations, the project introduces both a concrete and symbolic infrastructure of hope, transforming architecture into an instrument of awareness, responsibility, and social inclusion.

The Porta della Speranza thus redefines the concept of threshold as a space of exchange, where work becomes the key to dignity, reintegration, and a renewed relationship between individuals, institutions, and the city.

Special thanks to the Brescia District Prison “Nerio Fischione,” its Director Francesca Paola Lucrezi, Legal and Educational Officer Matteo Pedroni, and the Penitentiary Police staff. We also acknowledge the support and collaboration of the Municipality of Brescia, Mayor Laura Castelletti, Chief of Staff Giandomenico Brambilla, the Construction Coordination and Traffic Management Service, the Roads Department (Dario Nicolosi), and the Superintendence of Archaeology, Fine Arts and Landscape for the Provinces of Bergamo and Brescia (Giuseppe Stolfi, Annamaria Basso Bert, Serena Rosa Solano).
We extend our gratitude to the organisations engaged in educational initiatives and reintegration programmes within Brescia’s correctional facilities: the Employment Centre, CFP Zanardelli, the Brescia Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Crafts and Agriculture, Confindustria Brescia, Fondazione della Comunità Bresciana, IAL Lombardia Brescia, Gruppo Foppa, Confcooperative Brescia, Energheia Social Enterprise, Solco, the Brescia Criminal Bar Association, Space Work, and Fondazione Cariplo.