This is a made up male figure I am using to represent my cult abusers. Of course, not all religious cult abusers are male. There are female led abusive cults too.
I was taught that people who ‘loved god’ and went to church were ‘good’ people; that I would be safe with them! Unfortunately this is not true. In fact, religious institutions have been breeding grounds for abuse to flourish.
The Recovering Artist.
Painting into the emotion of my experiences in the cult I was raised from birth in has helped to bring emotional healing and clarity to me as I seek ongoing recovery from my abusive restrictive former existence.
I was not able to begin to consider painting anything until I left the cult after 43 years of submission and obedience where the practise of art was considered a waste of god’s time, and something not to be pursued or tolerated.
I am now a self-motivated artist who has benefitted from being a member of several amateur art groups. I observe and learn from others, but am always filtering and interpreting my art though my own life experience. My current mentor has been particularly helpful in guiding and letting me develop my style in my own way. Quite often I am surprised at what I paint but I understand the wisdom that is coming from within.
I paint my own ideas from my own pain and this often enables reflection and abstract interpretation of the memories and emotional experiences forced on me by my father and others who were leaders in this cult system of religion.
The Recovering Artist.