Murals honor fallen ‘Orange’ inmate

NEW YORK — Fans of “Orange Is the New Black” could do a double take this week in several large cities around the world — a familiar face may be looking back at them.

Netflix has commissioned artists in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, Detroit, Toronto, San Francisco, Sydney and Melbourne to paint murals of character Poussey Washington as both a tribute to her and a tease for the upcoming fifth season of the prison series, which starts June 9.

Washington, an inmate portrayed by actress Samira Wiley, was a fan favorite whose sudden death at the hands of corrections officers at the end of the fourth season stunned many. Netflix wanted to honor her with a portrait and the slogan “Stand Up.”

“I want to do the character justice and do the show justice because I think they have so many strong messages that are really relevant today,” said Detroit-based artist Michelle Tanguay, who said she cried when she watched Washington die. “I’m a huge, huge fan of the show. I actually watch it while I paint.”

Her hand-painted portrait is decorated with black, blue and white lines. It stands 24 by 25 feet and was painted on a brick wall at Detroit’s Broadway Street and Grand River Avenue. Netflix gave her the freedom to do whatever she wanted as long as she showed the character and used the show’s hashtag and slogan.

“I viewed this project as paying tribute to the character,” Tanguay said. “I wanted to make it very positive and that’s why I chose the bright colors, the bright blues, to just do her justice.” She added: “I just wanted to be able to see her again.”

Netflix joins other companies in embracing hand-painted murals in this digital age to get their messages out, including McDonald’s, Adidas, Ubisoft and Jack Daniels.