Unburdened Hermit

Large-Scale Burn sculpture, 2024

Unburdened Hermit is a reflection on the parts of ourselves we’ve built or collected over time—the roles, expectations, and identities that once felt necessary but no longer ring true. It explores the moment when protection becomes confinement, and the quiet courage it takes to set something down so we can grow in a new direction.

The sculpture takes the form of an oversized hermit-crab shell constructed from reclaimed wood. Its spiraling shape mirrors how layers accumulate: choices made for safety, habits formed for survival, identities shaped by others’ needs. What begins as shelter can slowly become a space that’s too tight to live in.

Visitors engaged with the piece through a series of small, contemplative rituals.
On the approach, they were invited to pick up a stone and consider what they’ve been carrying—something that may no longer serve who they are becoming. Inside the shell, they could write words on the walls that described what has been keeping them contained. Deeper in, strips of fabric offered a physical moment of release: people tore through the fabric as a symbolic escape from what has been constricting their heart. At the heart, a small water altar held space for fears to be named and gently dissolved.

The project culminated in a public burn ceremony. As the shell burned, it became a collective ritual of release—a way to honor what once protected us, let go of what no longer fits, and make room for something freer, truer, and more spacious.

Unburdened Hermit invites each person to consider what they’ve outgrown and what becomes possible when they step out of the shell they no longer need.