Law & Order

TO ORDER THE BOOK: go to “Bookshop“.

“(O)nly by making comparisons can we distinguish ourselves from others
and discover who we are, in order to become all that we are meant to be.”
Thomas Mann (1875-1955),  Joseph and His Brothers

Law & Order is a rare and innovative book about criminal justice combining as it does the world of photographic art with that of legal science. His photos reveal the daily realities of police, courts and the often hidden prison conditions in Colombia, France, Uganda and the United States of America.

The book includes Banning’s reflections on criminal punishment and Michiel Scholtes’ moving firsthand narrative of being tried and imprisoned in France. Legal specialists from the Max Planck Institute (MPI) in Freiburg, Germany provide brief introductions to the four countries’ justice systems, plus infographics on crime and criminal justice in them and a selection of other countries. Ulrich Sieber, director of the MPI, contributes a foreword.

This multifaceted collection of photos, texts and statistics raises questions about criminal policy that undermine political platitudes and popular clichés.

About Law&Order:
Pete Brook, “The Best Six Photobooks of 2015” (in Vantage)
“The pictures are a triumph. Cold critical views are followed by generous people studies. Sometimes subjects seem unaware of Banning’s presence and other times their stares meet the camera directly. There’s never a feeling like we’re in places we shouldn’t be though. Banning humanises his subjects and celebrates their routines. Often it might only be their routines that get them through.”

Eillie Anzilotti, in The Atlantic’s Citylab: “Taken together, the photographs present a thought-provoking meditation on the state of incarceration, and challenge prejudices and preconceptions about the various countries. Some of Banning’s photographs are explicit about their location: earth-toned walls and mats on the floor signify Uganda, and a small wall-mounted TV projecting an image of the Capitol Building denotes America. But other scenes are deliberately ambiguous, and leave space to consider the universal experience of incarceration.”

Elizabeth Krist (National Geographic photo editor and a juror for the SDN Award):
“The range of coverage is impressive – not only the physical contrast in facilities from one continent to another, but portraits of the incarcerated and administrators alike, both seen with directness and humanity.
Banning gives us a revealing view of issues that occasionally surface in the news but are seldom seen so intimately, and forces us to ask what the impact of being a prisoner will have on these lives.”

Law&Order received the Social Documentary Network (SDN) Award in 2016 and is on the shortlist for the World Report Award of the Festival della Fotografie Etica 2016.

PRICE (including shipping costs):
NL: EUR 40 – EU: EUR 45 – USA: USD 55 – Australia: AUD 55 – Japan: EUR 65

ISBN 978-90-77386-15-6

Format 240 x 320 mm
184 pages, with 70 photos; texts by Jan Banning, Michel Scholtes, Ulrich Sieber and others; infographics.
Design: Peter Jonker
Publisher: Ipso Facto (Utrecht, Netherlands)

BOOK PREVIEW: Click here

Reviews and publications (USA):
National Geographic, Slate, Citylab (The Atlantic), L’Oeil de la Photographie, Yahoo News, Fast Code Design, Take Part, NY University Press Blog etc.

OM HET BOEK TE BESTELLEN: ga naar “Bookshop“.

Prijs (inclusief verzending binnen NL): EUR 40,00

Law & Order is een ongebruikelijk en innovatief boek over strafrecht waarin de wereld van de kunst gecombineerd wordt met die van de juridische wetenschap. Banning fotografeerde bij politie en rechtbanken en in gevangenissen in Colombia, Frankrijk, Uganda en de Verenigde Staten van Amerika.

Het boek bevat voorts een essay van Banning over strafvervolging, en een aangrijpend verhaal van Michiel Scholtes die zelf jarenlang gevangen zat in Frankrijk. Juridische experts van het Max Planck Instituut (MPI) in Freiburg, Duitsland geven korte inleidingen op de rechtssystemen van de vier landen, plus infographics over criminaliteit en strafrecht in deze en een selectie van andere landen. Ulrich Sieber, directeur van het MPI, schreef het voorwoord.

Deze veelzijdige collectie foto’s, teksten en statistieken roept vragen op over strafrechtbeleid die politieke gemeenplaatsen en populaire clichés ontkrachten.