Inside Norway’s Halden Prison, a different approach to mental illness

Andre, who asked that his last name be withheld, stands in his room at Halden Prison in Norway, where there are no bars, barbed wire or armed guards. He's there for the kidnap and torture of a man in Norway's drug underworld, and lives in a substance use treatment unit at Halden.

Jan R. Stromnes, deputy governor of Halden Prison in Norway, says his country's correctional system is focused on "normality" and humane treatment.

Inmate Kim, left, and works officer Anders Johansson prepare to shoot a photograph in the print shop at Halden Prison in Norway.

Lars Dahl, 40, sits in the chapel at Halden Prison in Norway. When they're ready, inmates in Norway are allowed to leave the prison for short excursions to a store or church. "I've tried to build up friendships outside with people who don't do drugs," he said.

Halden Prison in Norway has one of the lowest recidivism rates in the world, with just 20% of released inmates returning to crime.

Daily life at Norway's Halden Prison includes frequent walks between housing units, classroom buildings and other areas along tree-lined paths such as this.

Inmate Mike, who didn't give his last name, plays the drums at Halden Prison in Norway. He's from the Netherlands and among 40% of Halden prisoners who come from foreign countries.

In the recording studio at Halden Prison in Norway, inmates create a weekly show broadcast on Norwegian public radio.

John Anders Braathen, 65, works in a textiles shop at Halden Prison in Norway. Products produced in the prison's textiles studio, print shop, art studios, wood shop and other learning centers can be purchased online at haldenfengselprodukter.no, a website produced by prisoners.

Thomas, who didn't give his last name, is pictured in the wood shop at Halden Prison in Norway, where inmates are allowed to work with hammers, saws and other tools banned in American prisons. He'll leave soon to serve the remainder of his sentence at a halfway house, where he'll be allowed to hold a job and visit his family at home.

Inmate Fredrik Soerfjordmo has earned his high school diploma and a diploma in photography, typography and digital tools at Halden Prison in Norway. He's also received psychotherapy to understand what led him to stab a man to death.

John Anders Braathen, an inmate at Halden Prison in Norway, said he enjoys chatting with other prisoners in the textiles studio at Halden while making creations like this wooly stuffed animal.

Janne Hasle, works manager at Halden Prison in Norway, directs the prison's arts studios, wood shop, print shop and other learning centers.

This painting by an inmate hangs on a wall at Halden Prison in Norway.

Monica Antila, a therapist on a substance abuse treatment unit at Halden Prison in Norway, points to a diagram on which she's written the Norwegian words for gifts of sobriety like freedom, inner calm, happiness, self-mastery and health.

Inmate Andre's room is in a substance use treatment unit at Halden Prison, where all prisoners have their own dorm-like rooms in units of 12 inmates who share a kitchen and living room area.

Liv Renate Saevik, a student correctional officer, plays a game with an inmate at Halden Prison. It takes two years to become a correctional officer in Norway, including a year in the classroom and a year of work with inmates.

Vocational officer Emelie Haale is seen in the crafts studio at Halden Prison in Norway. It's the first activity for new inmates. "Many will be surprised they can do something positive," Haale said.

A woman leans over to kiss a face in this sculpture created by an inmate in the ceramics studio at Halden Prison in Norway.

Paintings by inmates, such as this colorful depiction of a town at night, hang on walls throughout Halden Prison in Norway.

Tongs rest on a pottery wheel in the ceramics studio at Halden Prison in Norway. Arts and crafts are the first activities for every inmate admitted to Halden, but many continue to create throughout their time here.

Bunnies created by inmates are seen in the ceramics studio at Halden Prison in Norway. Some of their creations are sold online, on a website designed and maintained by prisoners.

A piece of pottery created by an inmate in the ceramics studio at Halden Prison in Norway.

A figurine created by a prisoner out of clay in the ceramics studio at Halden Prison in Norway.

Chef Marie Maereid directs the kitchen at Halden Prison in Norway. Inmates are allowed to use knives and prepare gourmet meals for diners at the prison's restaurant.

Inmates cook gourmet meals for visitors to Halden Prison's restaurant. The print shop produced this full-color cookbook of prisoners' recipes, titled "Decent Food in Halden Prison," with translations in English.

Cod fillet with parmesan potatoes is one of the recipes in the 153-page cookbook available for purchase at Halden's online store, along with ceramics and other artwork produced by inmates.

Works manager Janne Hasle stands in a light-filled corridor at Halden Prison in Norway, where inmates live in dorm-like rooms in three buildings on a campus filled with trees.

Lars Skahjem, chief of psychiatry at Halden Prison in Norway, said he hears of a prisoner-on-prisoner assault perhaps every third month, usually a shove or a punch, "not deadly."