The seven deadly sins, also known as the capital vices or cardinal sins, is a grouping and classification of vices within Christian, particularly Catholic, teachings.

In the fourth century, a Christian monk named Evagrius Ponticus recorded what’s known as the “eight evil thoughts”: gluttony, lust, avarice, anger, sloth, sadness, vainglory and pride.

The seven deadly sins were enumerated and rearranged by Pope Gregory 1 (the Great, in the 6th century and later elaborated by St. Thomas Aquinas in the 13th century). The seven deadly sins were a popular motif in medieval art and literature, and they have persisted as a concept through the centuries, eventually entering popular culture through film and television. The seven deadly sins may be thought of as dispositions toward sin and separation from the divine. The concept of immorality works to adversely feature certain current social and political stigmas and explore narratives that are disagreeable and disparaged in contemporary politics. These banner style artworks point to areas where the dominant narrative of progress and decency is fraught.

In this series of works the artist was Influenced by home-made and traditional union banners used during the myriad of anti-Poll Tax demonstrations (1989-1993) in Scotland. The artist intended each banner to encompass a spectrum of excessive and transgressive contemporary human behaviours. The images are sourced from both personal photographs and collected press images during1993. The collaged images were hand drawn in black textile dye, onto bed sheets given to the artists by members of the public. The finished artworks were hand sown in the style of Trade Union banners. The series was carried in procession and installed in the Seagate Gallery, Dundee and displayed as part of Project No 100022, Selen-Odenstrand Gallery, Stockholm, Sweden in 1993,

The Seven Deadly sins:

• Pride (also known as Vanity), considered by some to be the gravest of all sins is excessive belief in one’s own abilities, pride was the snare that seduced all of humanity in Adam and Eve
• Envy is the sadness or desire for the possessions, happiness, talents, or abilities of another. It comes from vainglory and severs a man from his neighbour.
• Gluttony (Latin: gula, derived from the Latin ‘gluttire’ meaning "to gulp down or swallow") means over-indulgence and over-consumption of food or drink.
• Lust is an inordinate craving for the pleasures of the body. Lust is to sex what greed is to money.
• Anger (also known as Wrath) is manifested in the individual who spurns love and opts instead for fury. This sin is defined as the inordinate and uncontrolled feeling of hatred and wrath.
• Greed (also known as Avarice or Covetousness) is the excessive desire for material possessions/wealth for gain, ignoring the realm of the spiritual.
• Sloth (also known as Acedia): Sloth is associated with physical laziness, also disinterest in spiritual matters and neglecting spiritual growth.