The Dancing Trees

There is a poem by Robert Frost entitled The Road Not Taken which explores the idea that life is a journey filled with diverging paths and the inevitability of choosing one over another. It contains the famous lines "Two roads diverged in a wood, and I – I took took the one less traveled by, and that has made all the difference." This painting is all about taking the road less traveled. It depicts a scene which G and I came across in our local botanical garden when we took a turn off the beaten path and found ourselves immersed in this breathtaking splendour. Colour seemed to be everywhere, from pinks and purples to yellows and reds, but it was the remarkable trees in the centre which stole the show: two figures, like lovers, locked in a dance. They gave this painting its title and what a joy it was to paint them!

This painting is featured in the Curated Collection New This Week 18 August 2025.