ABSTRACT
The chapter will respond to Jackson’s (2011) observations of new aesthetic approaches to social works through analysis of play-based practices that focus on working with participants with mid- to late-stage dementia. While drawing on many principles of applied theatre and participatory art, the practice challenged many of the assumptions and intentions of art with a social intent, questioning, and re-phrasing these into an ethics and aesthetics of care. The chapter is a tentative enquiry into the relationship between individual moments of aesthetic caring and public justice. The sentiment here is to recover the significance of the personal as a political imperative.
