The Fig Tree

Oil paint on panel, 16 x 16", 2025

The Fig Tree is an oil painting that layers visual and literary symbolism, depicting figs on a branch in various stages of ripeness painted atop Sylvia Plath’s iconic fig tree passage. Inspired by her metaphor of life branching out into countless possibilities, the piece reflects my experience of choice and direction. Each fig represents a different path I could have taken, careers, identities, futures, yet only one has ripened, symbolizing the life I am currently living. The painting becomes a reflection on both the abundance of opportunity and the quiet grief of paths not taken.