“NSAEN is proud to spotlight the work of Simon Bois, creator of Tattooed Steel, whose raw stainless steel engravings explore trauma, survival, healing, and human resilience.
Simon continues to be supported (since 2008) in his artistic endeavors, as well as his editorials, by www.lawfran.com @Fran Haasch and @Rhett Jones.
Readers wishing to support Simon’s suicide-awareness initiative and Tattooed Steel project through the People’s Artist competition may vote daily here: https://peoplesartist.org/2026/simon-bois-jLiR”
Art Born From Survival
By Florida Night Train | Published by NSAEN
There are pieces of art created for decoration.
And then there are pieces born from collision.
This one was born from survival.
Years ago, I wrote about a woman named Sally….a survivor of human trafficking, a biker, a mother, and a fierce advocate for victims of abuse. At the time, she had just won a Supreme Court case helping establish legal precedent that empowered victims nationwide to pursue justice against their abusers.
But what stayed with me most was not the court victory. It was a photograph. Her face tilted upward toward the sky. Exhausted, but unbroken. A look that carried both pain and triumph at once. Not happiness in the simplistic sense. Something deeper. The expression of someone who had walked through hell and somehow survived long enough to breathe again. That image stayed with me for years.
Long after the article. Long after the headlines. Long after Sally and I lost touch. I often wonder if she is okay. Some people leave fingerprints on your soul whether they realize it or not. Years later, inside a fabrication shop in Florida, I found myself staring at a blank sheet of stainless steel thinking about that photograph again. After permission granted by Sally, the Tattooed Steel process started.
That is how Tattooed Steel often begins. Not as business. As obsession. A memory that refuses to leave.
Tattooed Steel itself was born during one of the darkest periods of my own life. Following divorce and emotional collapse, I found refuge inside fabrication shops after hours. I spent 
nights sleeping on a military cot beside grinders, sparks, and steel surrounded by hundreds of bats … yes…bats…nested in the roof of an old railroad distribution center turned into multiple usage baies shop in Safety Harbor, Florida. Because creating became the only place my mind could rest. The cot shown in the photographs is real. There were nights where the shop became sanctuary more than workspace. No audience. No applause. Just silence, exhaustion, and steel dust. People often romanticize art, but many forms of art are survival mechanisms.
For me, stainless steel became therapy through precision and intensity. Every engraved mark demanded complete focus. For a while, pain, anxiety, and grief disappeared the moment the grinder touched metal. That is exactly what happened with Sally’s piece.
Unlike paint, stainless steel does not forgive hesitation. Every mark permanently alters the surface. The reflections shift with light and angle, forcing the artist to think emotionally and scientifically at the same time. The greatest challenge was preserving the humanity in her expression…..especially the eyes. Eyes reveal the war. You can fake confidence. You can fake strength. But eyes tell the truth. I wanted the piece to preserve that contradiction Sally carried in that moment: fragility and resilience existing simultaneously.
That is also the philosophy behind Tattooed Steel itself. Life tattoos all of us. Some marks come from love. Others from trauma, loss, or survival. Most people spend their lives hiding those scars. Tattooed Steel engraves them into metal instead. Not to glorify suffering…but to acknowledge it honestly. That honesty is also why this work is tied directly to my fight against suicide awareness.
My father took his own life. That reality never leaves you. It changes the way you see pain, isolation, and the silent battles people carry behind closed doors. Through this competition and this body of work, my hope is not simply to win votes, but to invite conversation around survival, healing, and human connection.
If this story or this piece speaks to you, I would be honored to have your support.
You can vote daily for my work and help support the broader message behind Tattooed Steel and suicide awareness here: https://peoplesartist.org/2026/simon-bois-jLiR
Tattooed Steel: www.facebook.com/tattooedsteelllc
Night Train: www.facebook.com/floridanighttrain
SALLY RICHARDSON
Co-Director, Fighting Against Trafficking Org. and Sex Trafficking Consultant
Mother of six children grandmother of two. With 25 years experience as an Executive Assistant, Sally is a survivor of human trafficking and domestic violence. She is currently Co-Director of “Fighting Against Trafficking Organization”. Sally also strongly focuses on her practice as a consultant championing the cause of victims’ rights of sexual crimes, domestic abuse and violence against women and children.
Sally recently won a supreme court case in South Dakota, making it caselaw across the country, thus giving victims of abuse who are able to prove they have long suffered and currently still suffer from their abuse, the ability to take their perpetrator to civil court for jury trial and pursue punitive damages.
Sally’s expertise has been utilized by legislators throughout the Midwest to help pass new and tougher sex trafficking legislation. She is a sought-after speaker and has successfully contributed to organizations such as; Creighton University’s Human Trafficking Initiative, Women’s Fund, NHTTF Thriver Committee, National Survivor Network, and the Polaris Project.
