In the autumn semester 2011, the studio ’Architecture on display’ gathered seven AHO master students for an intensive study of 19^th century institutions: Norway’s first modern prison (Christiania Penitentiary, 1851), the first mental hospital (Gaustad asylum, 1855), and the first public art museum (the National Gallery, 1881). Through archival research, literature studies, academic writing, and curatorial practice, the students examined the architectural, intellectual, and cultural contexts of these important modern institutions. The results were presented as an exhibition at AHO WORKS, 12^th-16^thDecember 2011, and in the exhibition cataloguePunishment, Madness and Bildung: Three 19^th Century Institutions. The course was led by Mari Hvattum and Mari Lending, with Halvard Amble, Iselin Bogen, Mathilde Dahl, Lene Furulund, Lone Kjersheim, Linda Nikolaisen, and Anders Rudlang as participating students.