Own Your Sin Series: Lust Oil Painting and Symbolism

Lust: A Deadly Sin Painting by Julia O'Sullivan

Own Your Sin

Lust oil painting and symbolism:

My Journey Into Sin (and a Bit of Virtue)

After over two years of wrestling with the Seven Deadly Sins—and their slightly better-behaved cousins, the Seven Heavenly Virtues—I can finally say: yes, I’ve stared into the abyss, and it texted me back. What began as a simple painting project quickly snowballed into a full-on exploration of human nature, morality, and my own questionable life choices.

Through each piece, I didn’t just paint the sins—I lived them. Pride? Checked. Lust? Oh, I checked it with gusto. Sloth? Let’s just say I really got to know my couch. I wanted to see the raw, messy, sometimes hilarious reality of our moral contradictions. Alongside each sin, I threw in the virtues—not to be boring—but to prove that even goodness has a dark side, usually hiding behind a halo that’s slightly crooked.

These paintings are my way of saying: nobody’s innocent. We all have sin tucked away somewhere, whether we’re aware of it or not. But here’s the twist: acknowledging your quirks and vices isn’t just cathartic—it’s surprisingly liberating. Emotional intelligence isn’t just a buzzword; it’s the secret sauce that turns guilt, rage, or lust into self-awareness… or at least something you can hang on a wall.

Lust: A Primal, Problematic, and Sometimes Hilarious Force

Ah, Lust. The sin that makes you do things your future self will absolutely regret. In my painting, Lust is a ravenous, all-consuming force—equal parts desire, domination, and chaos. Think Roman sandals, but way more morally questionable. Those gripped by Lust often leave wreckage behind—hearts, egos, and sometimes small furniture—because unchecked desire is basically a natural disaster in human form.

Then there’s Chastity, Lust’s prim and proper counterpart. At first glance, it looks pure, serene, maybe even boring—but scratch the surface, and you’ll see the dark side of self-control. Sometimes the most “virtuous” souls are just perfect at hiding their inner demons behind an impeccable collar. My painting nudges viewers to question these hypocrisies, all while staring down the bell jars of fragile lives caught in the crossfire of desire and restraint.

The Takeaway

Through this journey, I’ve learnt a few things:

• Sins are inevitable. Virtues are optional (but helpful).

• Painting them is cheaper than therapy—but almost as intense.

• Accepting your flaws is the first step toward accepting others.

• Lust is relentless, pride is stubborn, sloth is seductive, and all of them make for excellent artistic material.

Ultimately, these works aren’t just about sin or virtue—they’re about us. The messy, complicated, hilarious, heartbreaking human beings we all are. And if you can laugh at yourself along the way, well… that’s half the battle won.

To know more about this Lust oil painting head on over to www.jupigio-artwork.com

In this painting, Lust is depicted as an ugly, contorted version of the self—an inner force distorted by unchecked desire. The bell jars represent precious, self-contained worlds, protected with grace and dignity, each holding its own fragile balance. Yet these worlds are vulnerable. Lust invades them, disrupting harmony and shattering their delicate order.

Lust appears in many forms: the destruction of innocent young lives, the breakdown of families, the pursuit of power, as seen in politics, and the craving for glory and worship. Within each bell jar, I explore a different manifestation of this force, revealing how desire can take root in multiple aspects of human behaviour and ambition.

The creatures that dominate the bell jars are grotesque reflections of the inner self—driven by appetite and instinct, indifferent to the chaos they cause. They take what they want without restraint, their eyes consumed with hunger and delight for the objects of their fixation. Probing and invasive, they embody consumption without conscience, destroying the fragile worlds they invade. The inverted crosses they wear as adornment signify a rejection of moral boundaries; they have fully surrendered to primal impulse, regardless of consequence or judgement.

Within the reflection of each bell jar appears its counterpart: Chastity. Here, chastity is embodied by a priest whose convictions are continuously tested. It is important to note that restraint does not erase desire; rather, it represents the ongoing negotiation between impulse and control. In this sense, chastity is not necessarily presented as an unquestioned virtue, but as a state of continual resistance.

The idiom “as horny as a Roman sandal” is woven into the composition as a satirical undertone, reinforcing the absurdity and extremity of uncontrolled desire.

The Gluttonous Devil sits nearby, surrounded by fire and brimstone, waiting patiently to consume Lust within the flames. He appears almost amused, as though enjoying the inevitability of excess and its consequences. Yet beyond the destruction, Eden remains visible—untouched and unscorched, encircling the flames and suggesting that purity and peace still exist even in the presence of corruption.

As with the other works in the series, Pandora’s Box is present, resting upon the bell jars as a reminder of humanity’s hidden impulses and the fragility of restraint. The white dove moves freely through the trees, symbolising purity, transcendence and the possibility of release from desire’s grip.

Lust is therefore presented not simply as physical desire, but as a broader force of consumption, invasion and imbalance—one that disrupts inner worlds, challenges moral boundaries and exposes the tension between instinct and restraint.