Acrylic on wood, ready to hang.
Signed on the front.
When I first moved out to the farm we spent the first year eagerly watching the fruit trees. The orchard was overgrown and in desperate need of care. None of the trees were labelled so we had to wait with the seasons to see the leaves develop, the blossoms and finally the fruit.
One gnarled looking tree was cut down by the previous owner. It was reduced to a black stump with one small sucker trying to grow. I spent many months fertilising and watering this sad tree. Each year another sucker would grow out the base of the stump and grow bigger and bigger. That Spring the gnarled stumps branches grew large glossy leaves. Was it a pear? an apple tree maybe?
Last year our question was answered; the tree produced it's first fruit. They were large, bright yellow and nobbly. Our little gnarled stump had made a resurgence from the dead to produce Quince!
This tree gives me joy. It's symbolic of the growth that can come from trauma and sometimes when somethings broken and all hope seems lost, care and love is needed.