Imogen Paton, finely built with a pale blonde bob and a sassy, confident smile, is an intriguing sight, perched against the wreck of the Chevrolet Impala that she takes to music festivals and events around the country. Surely the car, with its crushed grille, crumpled sides and body decorated with scribbles, drawings, comments and poems, is an entertaining display of youthful art? Well, not exactly. The Bad Karma Impala, as she calls it, is a stark metaphor for the wrecked state that Imogen was left in after becoming a teenage victim of domestic violence and extreme emotional abuse.

Imogen was a 19-year-old art student when she met and quickly moved in with her first real “love”. “I think I wanted someone badly to represent the