jackie sumell and jasmine in Houston, Texas. Photo Credit: Aidi Kansas
From his cell on death row in Texas, Obie Weathers III grows a garden. As he considers what to plant, he thinks about his lost molar, about how most of the men he sees don’t have a full grill when they smile, about how dental care in prison is abhorrent. He doesn’t know plants at all, but that’s where he starts. The artist visiting him, jackie sumell, makes mental notes. This is what she does: She builds gardens on the outside that emerge from the imaginations and designs of those incarcerated in solitary confinement. Spilanthes, yarrow, and mint. This is what she grows and, with time, sells; the proceeds go directly to Obie’s life fund. Meanwhile, Obie requests books on plant dyes, dreaming up how to use them to paint.