This painting represents a step on my path towards a deeper visual expression of the life force of trees and other plants.  I think of it as a plant portrait.  It tries to capture the very short moment in early spring when plants emerge from dormancy with exquisite delicacy and fragility.

This image began as a celebration of the dogwood tree in my garden, a native species in many a hedgerow, with vibrant red bark and tender bright green leaves as they unfurl from bud.  It developed into something more about the negative spaces, and what lies beyond, in the cold spring light. The body of water has many meanings. It was inspired by a holy spring in Llanrhaeadr, St Dyfnog's Well, a mystical place that I am drawn to. The painting bears the scars of reworking as the image and its meaning revealed itself to me, as with much of my work. I don't hide this struggle, which is part of the process, a bit like kintsugi.