What can art reveal about law or justice? Can explorations in the arts lead to better understandings of law? Is it possible to use general principles from aesthetic theory to inform the nature of justice? How does art speak through law? This workshop aims to address questions such as these through inquiry into the relationship between law, justice, and art. We encourage a diverse range of submissions, using the full range of the arts to explore both theoretical and practical questions in law. Examples of directions papers could take include: 

•Analyzing law or justice from the standpoint of some aesthetic theory •Critiquing law as a form of art  •Exploring the autonomy of law and art in modernity   •Examining judicial decision-making as an aesthetic practice   •Assessing the relation between justice, beauty, and truth in Ancient Greek philosophy  •Exploring law, art, and the “fiction fondatrice”  •Understanding the symbolism of law and justice by means of art   •Exploring the limits of justice through some work(s) of literature  •Examining how characteristics of law or the nature of justice can be revealed through individual works or different forms of art (e.g., drama, literature, poetry, music, dance, architecture, painting, sculpture, photography, film)   •Illuminating aspects of some area of law (e.g., tort law, criminal law, constitutional law, unjust enrichment, indigenous law) through individual works or different forms of art  •Examining law and art as symbolic forms   •Assessing the relation between law and art in modern German philosophy   

These are only a few examples of suitable approaches for presentations at this special workshop. We encourage creativity. The workshop will contribute to the IVR 2024 Congress themes by showing how insights drawn from aesthetic theory and the full range of the arts can enhance our understanding of the rule of law, justice, and democratic institutions.  

We welcome submissions in English with title, abstract (max. 300 words), author name, and brief biography by May 31, 2024. We particularly encourage contributions from interdisciplinary scholars and from those employing non-traditional methods of inquiry. We also welcome suggestions for panel discussions.