3 - From Prison to Court

Summary

Chapter 3, From Prison to Court, provides an historical account of the Constitutional Court of South Africa as a key institution in the ‘new’ South Africa. Established at the point of transition from apartheid to democracy, the Court was built on the site of several former notorious prisons. The court building is a unique space by international comparison, not only because it has transformed the penal site but because it also incorporates artworks into the fabric of the building, and houses a large visual art collection developed by and for the Court. In order to understand the conceptual and concrete transitions of the Court, I trace its development with a particular focus on the unique policies and processes through which the art collection came into being. By drawing on key policy documents, as well reflections from people involved in the initial development of the Court and those who currently inhabit and manage the Court, I argue that art has been a central component of the most significant institution to emerge out of South Africa’s transition and it continues to be so.