2025 ArtPrize Venue x Michigan Justice Fund x LINC UP
SOWING SEEDS OF COMMUNITY
A mural reimagining safety through art, care, and community.
Located at: 📍341 Hall st se
Sowing Seeds of Community
is about more than art—
it’s about sparking dialogue.
We invite you to pause and reflect:
Disclaimer: Your response is anonymous. By submitting, you agree that LINC UP may share or use reflections in future materials, storytelling, or community reports. Your contribution helps spark dialogue, inspire action, and shape a collective vision for safety. Thank you.
In fall 2024, the Michigan Justice Fund (MJF) partnered with its grantee LINC UP to sponsor a mural on LINC UP’s Gallery for entry into ArtPrize. The project centers on reimagining public safety and decarceration. This project is a collaboration between a local muralist and a Michigan-based artist directly impacted by mass incarceration.
MJF and LINC UP issued an open call to system-impacted individuals and their families across Michigan, inviting portfolios and design concepts in response to:
• What does a safe community look like?
• What might the world look like beyond policing and incarceration?
• How do we build a future grounded in community care?
A review panel—including MJF and LINC UP staff, the muralist, and two directly impacted artists—selected Johnny Van Patten.
This project supports LINC UP’s and MJF’s ongoing efforts to challenge dominant narratives surrounding mass incarceration, advocate for criminal legal reform and transformation, and amplify the voices of people impacted by mass incarceration. We believe in the power of art and design in forwarding social justice and change.
About the Mural Project
The Vision on the Wall:
Artist Statement
“Sowing Seeds of Community” envisions a truly safe and inclusive society, one free from prejudice, where people of all backgrounds live in harmony. Rather than depicting mass incarceration or over-policing, which fail to ensure real safety, the mural celebrates the transformative power of investing in those most impacted by systemic incarceration and in the communities they call home.
At the heart of the composition stands a Kokopelli figure planting seeds, which sprout into books, symbols of knowledge, being sown into children, our future, and into homes, reflecting a central focus of LINC UP and the foundation for successful reentry. Flourishing vines grow from these seeds, bearing fruit that represents empowered community members: a construction worker, a nurse, a graduate, a doctor, and children.
In Michigan, approximately three million people have criminal records, about three in every ten residents. Figuratively, this means that nearly any of the figures depicted in the mural could be directly impacted by, or have loved ones affected by, the criminal legal system.
Set against a silhouette of Grand Rapids, the vibrant mural is filled with natural elements, rich patterns, and subtle, symbolic details. Its triangular composition centers on the Kokopelli, embodying the act of sowing education, care, and opportunity. Together, these elements affirm a simple truth: when we invest in people—not prisons and policing—we cultivate safe, thriving communities.
About the Collaborators
Johnny Van Patten — A Lansing-based tattoo and fine artist, is known for his precision pencil work and vibrant acrylic paintings. His art has been featured at venues including the Broad Museum at Michigan State University, the Gutman Gallery, the Ann Arbor Summer Art Fair, ArtPrize, and the Prison Creative Arts Project. A member of the Ann Arbor Guild of Artists & Artisans, Johnny also advocates for prison art, often speaking on its power to transform lives.
Edwin D. Anderson Jr. — A Grand Rapids muralist and digital marketer who blends creative vision with strategy. He specializes in branding, content, and analytics-driven campaigns that grow audience engagement—bringing both artistry and execution to community projects.
Michigan Justice Fund (MJF) — A funders’ collaborative investing to reduce criminal legal system entry, shift public dollars to community-driven alternatives, and ensure returning citizens have resources to flourish.
LINC UP — A Grand Rapids community development organization advancing racial equity and economic & political power in the greater Grand Rapids community by removing barriers, expanding opportunities, and increasing affordable housing.
Why It Matters
Public safety grows where care, opportunity, housing, health, and education are seeded. This mural is a public invitation to imagine safety beyond punishment—and to center the wisdom and leadership of people most impacted by incarceration.
See the Mural
Location: LINC UP Gallery, 341 Hall St SE, Grand Rapids, MI
Get Involved
Attend & Share: Visit the mural during ArtPrize and bring a friend.
Join the Conversation: Add your reflection at our prompt above.
Support the Work: Donate to LINC UP to sustain community-led arts, advocacy, and safety initiatives.
Partner With Us: Organizations and educators—contact us to host dialogues, tours, or classroom engagements.