The Haunted Self-built Beacon

THE HAUNTED SELF-BUILT BEACON: The Bleeding Tree

This is an autobiographical sculptural meditation on trauma, memory, resilience, and the enduring pursuit of freedom. The work draws inspiration from a childhood story my grandmother often told about a mysterious tree that bled whenever one of its branches was cut. As a child, I dismissed the tale as another frightening story meant to keep us disciplined. Years later, I came to understand it differently—not merely as folklore, but as a prophecy that would echo through my own life.

Growing up amid conflict in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and later living as a refugee, I experienced the invisible wounds of war, displacement, separation, grief, and fractured identity. Like the bleeding tree, every painful experience seemed to leave a wound that continued to bleed long after the event itself had passed. This sculpture transforms that personal history into a universal reflection on the human condition.

More than an artwork, The Haunted Self-Built Beacon stands as an emotional monument to both visible and invisible scars. Constructed from raw, symbolic materials and shaped through an intuitive process of molding and chiseling, the sculpture explores how memory, vulnerability, displacement, and generational trauma shape the architecture of the self.

Every material carries symbolic significance. Wood evokes endurance and human growth; paper represents fragile memory and lived experience; wire mesh suggests both protection and entrapment; aluminium foil reflects a delicate armour shielding the mind from collapse; while acrylic paint and varnish unify these contrasting elements into a testimony of survival. Together, they form a body that appears wounded yet remains standing.

The title itself embodies a paradox. The “haunted self” speaks to the lingering presence of traumatic memory, while the “self-built beacon” represents the conscious decision to transform suffering into wisdom, hope, and moral strength. The beacon is not something discovered externally—it is painstakingly constructed from the very experiences that once threatened to destroy it.

As part of The World of Circles, the sculpture continues my exploration of freedom, identity, memory, exile, heritage, and spiritual resilience. Through the visual philosophy of Dotism, it reflects the interconnected cycles of pain, healing, remembrance, and renewal that shape individual lives and collective histories.

Ultimately, The Haunted Self-Built Beacon is an invitation to reflection. It asks whether pain must remain a prison, or whether it can become the foundation from which we illuminate the path for ourselves and for others. It stands as a testimony that even the deepest wounds can give rise to courage, authorship of the self, and an unwavering determination to pursue freedom.

Original Artwork:

Mixed media sculpture

Wood, paper, glue, wire mesh, aluminium foil, acrylic paint, and varnish

Molding, chiseling, and contemporary symbolic abstraction

20 × 22 × 29 inches

2024-2025

Freestanding sculpture