The Jungle We Live In, Acrylic, Oil and Beads on Canvas, 100 x 100 cm, Angela Wambui, Kenya

Angela Wambu in Bridging Worlds Through Art

Angela’s work is a profound exploration of self—an artistic journey through the layers of human experience. Each self-portrait invites the viewer to connect with their vulnerabilities and identity, making her art deeply personal and universally relatable.

Her Mixed-Media work captures the delicate balance between the conscious and unconscious realms. Angela combines acrylics and oils to depict the tangible world we navigate daily, in contrast to the beadwork that represents the unconscious world—an intricate tapestry of fears, vulnerabilities, and hidden aspects of self. Through vibrant colours and meticulous placement of her glass beadwork, she creates a powerful dialogue between the seen and unseen aspects of our lives.

In The Jungle We Live In, the artist explores the wild terrain of the human psyche, a place where reason and instinct, courage and fear, intertwine. A crocodile, exquisitely crafted in beadwork, emerges as a symbol of the unconscious: the hidden forces that shape our perceptions and decisions.

The work reflects on how we move through life’s jungle, sometimes bravely advancing even while aware of the dangers that surround us, other times stepping forward blindly, believing we are safe. At times, we emerge unharmed, unaware of how close we came to threat; at others, our unacknowledged fears quietly hold us back.

The butterfly glasses serve as a metaphor for this delicate balance. Just as a butterfly rests near the crocodile’s mouth, an image of fragility and courage, we, too, take risks simply by living. Like the butterfly, we navigate uncertainty, often unaware of how vulnerable our position truly is.

Through this subtle tension between danger and grace, paralysis and impulse, The Jungle We Live In becomes a meditation on the fragile dance between the conscious and the unconscious, a reminder that what we do not see can guide us as deeply as what we do.