One Man Cult

Investigating cults has always been an area of fascination for me. I once wondered how an acolyte could blindly devote themselves to a leader; following each and every command, participating in harmful behaviours and devoting their very being to those they hold in high regard. During a mental breakdown last year I came to understand this mindset in my own way. I found myself listening intently to intrusive thoughts and justifying bad decisions according to my own preaching. I questioned everything including the motives of those closest to me - struggling to discern what was real and what was fake, trying to make sense of the world around me according to what my anxiety was telling me.

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'One Man Cult' is a series of visual representations created in response to my experiences during this episode. I developed my own personal cult in which I would assume the roles of both leader and follower. Presented as a series of tableaus with references to classical art, literature and real-world religions, this body of work charts the evolution of my private commune from its inception to its eventual downfall, which resulted in the symbolic death of part of myself.

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Through this series of self-portraits featuring duplicates of myself interacting with one another, I aim to communicate outwardly how terrified I was of myself during that time, and to reveal aspects of the process of seeking solace within my own mind.

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