A line of birches stands at the far edge of a darkness that fills most of the canvas. Their pale trunks lift out of a thin band of ochre grass, and above them the crowns give way to a soft white mist that holds the painting's light. The dark below seems unresolved.

Samantha Torrisi was born in Catania in 1977 and graduated from the Accademia di Belle Arti di Catania in 2002. She lives and works on the slopes of Mount Etna, and the forests that surround the volcano are the source for much of her recent painting. The faded palette and softened edges that characterise her work give even emptiness a quality of tenderness.