Aesthetics of the possible: Art, democracy and political imagination

Abstract

The present issue of Cuadernos de Teoría Social is inserted in this growing problematization, bringing together in an eclectic way a collection of works that, through different lenses and approaches, explore the participation of imaginaries in the construction of possible worlds that challenge the established symbolic orders. A central aspect that acts as a common thread in these contributions refers, specifically, to the question of the form of society from multiple perspectives. In this context, one of the objectives of this special issue is to promote a space for reflection on the role of symbolic forms in the constitution of political institutions and how these become objects of controversy where strategies of resistance and dissent are manifested.

How do artistic practices dispute and challenge the hegemonic modes of meaning that articulate the political experience; under what assumptions and modalities do artistic and aesthetic practices participate in the construction and mobilization of political imaginaries; to what extent do figurations of the political amplify our register of possibilities when thinking and imagining democracy and society; to what extent do figurations of the political amplify our register of possibilities when thinking and imagining democracy and society?