Lady Justice

Commissioned by Atelier Rijksbouwmeester, Arno Coenen created the artwork Lady Justice in 2006 for the courthouse in Middelburg. This impressive stained glass window, produced by Atelier Schmit Glas in Lood in Haarlem, covers approximately 100 square meters. The work is a contemporary interpretation of the classical theme of Lady Justice.

Coenen drew inspiration from traditional stained-glass windows but added a modern twist by constructing the image from pixels in three different sizes. This creates a play of sharpness and blur — a fitting metaphor, according to Coenen, for the pursuit of truth and justice. The composition is a collage of elements that reinforce the theme: Lady Justice herself, the all-seeing eye, stripes from police cars, red-and-white police tape, and an energy bar are among the motifs embedded in the glass.

With this contemporary approach, Coenen successfully combines classical symbolism with modern visual language, making Lady Justice not merely a decorative piece but a work that adds a deeper conceptual layer to the public space.

Mothership supervised the project from concept to completion. The artwork was commissioned by the Ministry of the Interior and Kingdom Relations, under the supervision of the Chief Government Architect.