Dark and Lovely

2020 – ongoing

human hair
100 × 100 cm

This work is part of the Dark and Lovely series, which I began during lockdown in 2020. During this time of isolation and personal transformation, I decided to cut off my dreadlocks—after ten years of wearing them. This act, both symbolic and liberating, coincided with the completion of my bachelor's degree in sculpture and marked a profound moment of transition.

Without access to studios or traditional materials, I began working with what was available to me: my own hair. This resulted in a series that interweaves personal memory with collective history.

The work is inspired by amasunzu , a traditional Rwandan hairstyle with intricate patterns that historically expressed social status, beauty, and cultural identity. Discovering images of these hairstyles online provided a starting point for me to explore the relationship between body, material, and history.

The visible traces on the surfaces of the works are direct impressions—fragments that convey an intimate yet collective narrative: the transformation of an everyday material into a vessel for memory and meaning. Dark and Lovely is a reflection on identity, diaspora, and the potential of personal histories to connect with past and present.