Democratic Republic of Congo

The case follows Brice Mumbere Kamabu’s development from young participant to professional artist and local change agent, situated within long-term field relationships in the DRC.

Practice and inquiry

Community Painting Peace RDC and later collaborative work provide the ethnographic setting. The inquiry examines artistic development, locally sustained action and the relationship between creative expression and community resources amid continuing conflict.

Method and interpretation

The case combines ethnographic field relationships, arts-based inquiry and semi-structured interviews. Benjamin interprets the accounts through expressive arts, salutogenesis and conflict transformation, attending to the interplay of collective creation, witnessing and continuing local action.

Limits and next questions

The dissertation did not conduct quantitative Neuroarts studies. Time, funding and the conditions of active conflict constrained the research. These accounts do not establish measured clinical effects or universal causation. Further work could compare community participants’ and witnesses’ experiences and combine qualitative inquiry with psychological or physiological measures.

Source: Artegenesis Phenomenon, Chapter VI, cross-case discussion in Chapter VIII and limitations in Section 9.2. Chapter numbering follows the dissertation.