JUSTICE.

Aug 7

Organic Tarot: Justice

Justice has a funny way of showing up right when you’re convinced you’ve gotten away with something. Not in the dramatic, “the universe is punishing you” kind of way, but in the much more humbling, “Did you really need to eat cookies for dinner and call it self-care?” kind of way. This card isn’t interested in punishment. She’s interested in honesty. And honestly… she’s exhausted in the best possible way.

When I began creating this collage, I realized I didn’t want Justice to be another figure holding a sword and scales, staring everyone down like she’s about to issue parking tickets for bad decisions. I wanted her to feel rooted. Calm. Unmovable. She doesn’t have to convince anyone of her power because she already knows where she stands. The green halo speaks to growth instead of perfection, while the plants covering her body remind me that justice isn’t about exposing every flaw, it’s about protecting what deserves to flourish. The rope wrapped around her hand became a reminder of the invisible agreements we make with ourselves: the boundaries we keep, the ones we ignore, and the promises we eventually have to answer for.

Working on this card also forced me to confront one undeniable truth: I negotiate with myself constantly. “I’ll organize the studio tomorrow.” “One more episode won’t hurt.” “This glue stick still has plenty left.” Justice looked at all of that and simply raised an eyebrow. She doesn’t argue. She just quietly places the evidence on the table and waits for me to catch up.

As Organic Tarot continues to unfold, Justice feels less like a courtroom and more like a mirror. She asks me to weigh my intentions against my actions, my values against my habits, and my dreams against the work I’m actually willing to do. The beautiful thing is that she isn’t asking for perfection. She’s asking for alignment. Because in the end, the hardest person to be honest with isn’t the world…it’s yourself. And thankfully, this version of Justice seems wise enough to let me laugh at myself while I’m figuring it out.

Tya Alisa Anthony

Tya Alisa Anthony is an American artist, photographer, writer, and independent curator whose work explores memory, mythology, ancestry, and the quiet ways people leave themselves behind in the objects they touch. For more than twenty years, her practice has existed at the intersection of visual research, education, and cultural storytelling, investigating resilience through the body, the landscape, historical archives, and the natural world.

Working across photography, collage, cyanotype, botanical collections, handmade books, and mixed media, Anthony approaches each body of work as an evolving archive rather than a finished statement. She is drawn to weathered photographs, heirlooms, medicinal plants, folklore, ritual objects, forgotten architecture, and the symbolic language that connects cultures across time. Her work asks how identity is preserved, transformed, and remembered.

Alongside her studio practice, Anthony has spent more than two decades building educational programs, exhibitions, and community-centered initiatives that expand access to the arts. Her leadership has helped shape institutions, mentor emerging artists, develop sustainable systems, and create spaces where creativity becomes a lifelong practice rather than a privilege.

Anthony’s artwork is included in the permanent collections of the Denver Art Museum and the Museum of Contemporary Art Denver’s Octopus Collection. Her work has been exhibited nationally and is held in numerous private collections.

She is currently creating Organic Tarot, a 78-card hand-collaged tarot deck and accompanying memoir that intertwines mythology, autobiography, botanical symbolism, and the archetypal journey of transformation. The project reflects the central thread running throughout her career: that art is not simply something we make—it is a way of understanding ourselves, preserving what matters, and leaving a map for those who come after us.

http://www.tyaanthony.com

JUSTICE.

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