Our Scribble Tree

Jessie Nilo, Amy Hui, 25 incarcerated Art Students of ISCC

Watercolor and Posca marker

Last month while out in the foothills, I wandered up to a large dead tree at the top of a hill. I stood underneath its enormous canopy of bare branches and looked up. The tree branches circled, loop-de-looped, and cascaded through the air above me, crossing and twisting and reaching in every possible direction. Trees are God’s scribble-scrabble in the sky, I mused to myself.

Back in my studio, I drew the tree. (You can watch me draw it on our Instagram.) Then I brought this drawing into the prison where I teach art, and our art students used watercolor to complete the artwork. They each chose a small section to paint.

Some of these men haven’t seen a real tree in decades. Painting this felt a little scary at first for most of them, but about 25 guys helped paint the Scribble Tree and sky. It was wonderful to collaborate on this tree with them.