The Secret Keeper | Catherine Daniels

About the book and the author

This is the story of Catherine Daniels’ childhood trauma and sexual abuse kept secret for years. It wasn’t until she was nearly 50 that she realised her secrets made her unwell. A meeting with author, Joan Rosier-Jones, changed her life forever. She started to unfold the layers of her history through words, many of them in metaphorical form. She joined a writers’ group which supported her in her journey through the complexities of understanding her own mental health issues.

One day she couldn’t write, so decided to make a sculpture to portray what she couldn’t say in words. That day The Secret Keeper was born. By creating these sculptures and metaphors, she slowly unfolded her past in a way she was able to control. Each of the forty sculptures tells their own story.

Through her works, Catherine Daniels hopes to start the important conversations needed to help others navigate their own journeys of healing through childhood trauma, parental neglect, sexual abuse and mental health issues.

About the photographer

Esther Bunning is recognised as one of New Zealand’s leading story-teller photographic portrait artists and her works reflect the heart of her subjects by giving a visual voice to their story. Her signature style is recognisable for her creative use of in-camera techniques and she loves to combine the magic of blur, movement, abstraction and light to create poignant images that transcend photography.