We Are All A Lotus by Natasha Stover
My painting is titled, “We are all a Lotus” As a woman in prison, I understand all too well what it is like to have people judge my character based off of my past. Our crimes do not define who we are. We deserve to be seen as the women we’ve bloomed into, and not just the muddy waters we grew out of. These lifers deserve the chance to show the world what they’ve blossomed in to. Like the older woman in my painting,, they’ve long since grown out of their past, broken the chains of it, and have risen above it all to show everyone their beauty. The purple behind her represents growth, self improvement, insight and inspiration.
[Image Description: This brightly colored painting has an older white woman in a prison jumpsuit bursting out of two large yellow lotus flowers with a back drop of a purple burst. The woman has long silver hair and she has her arms raised to high with handcuffs dangling off each wrist. There is text on both sides of the women. To the left “End Death by Incarceration” and to the right, “Like the lotus, these women have risen from their muddy waters to blossom into something beautiful. They deserve a second chance.”]
