Reaped Abundance: Decay is a sub-series of Zeise’s primary series Reaped Abundance, which also explores the political and social implications of legislative and societal censorship surrounding the female body, reproduction, and menstruation. Through the use of symbolic objects – fruits like papaya, pomegranates, and oranges – the work examines how historical and mythological imagery can depict the ongoing sexualization, and consequential suppression, of female anatomy in the modern day. Employing a Renaissance-inspired still life aesthetic, the series evokes a sense of being trapped in the past while simultaneously highlighting these symbols in a contemporary dialogue. Where this series differs from the primary is the placement of the digital pixelation and how the application serves as a visual metaphor for the continuous rise of societal and legislative censorship, with the subject gradually becoming more concealed as each image progresses. Though the fruits themselves are not inherently sexual, their distortion prompts the audience to reflect on the social climate in current events and how rights from multiple minority groups are being stripped in local, state, and federal levels. By balancing beauty with restriction, viewers are invited to question their own reactions to censorship, including their involvement, or perhaps, complacency, in these social issues.