The tables are turned in this painting as Dionysus; the god of wine and ecstasy is replaced by a regal female. Stylistically she merges Boticelli’s The Birth of Venus and Caravaggio’s Bacchus and in turn places the symbol of ideal femininity into the lustful and unruly masculine God. She is passionate, present and penetrating, full flow and grace.

The painting also has dispersed symbols referring to the myth of Artemis, his female counterpart influencing the wild nature in humans but from different perspectives and intentions.

Free feminine spirit nymphs, to the left and right of the woman dance in the background. This continues the theme of three recent artworks (of which TAVLI IN A BOAT MADE FOR TWO is one) where ethereal beings visibly playing in the space around the main subjects of each painting. These figures represent the Maenads who in Greek mythology were the ecstatic dancers and followers of Dionysus. The pinecone staff to the right of the painting further symbolizes their role in reminding people of their wild nature and the importance of expressing and integrating freedom and spiritual power in life. Though in the stories told about them their wildness has a capacity to be destructive and brutal these tales and extreme illustrations of power, can be seen as metaphors for spiritual, existential and phycological dimensions of existence.

In part this painting answered a question I had at the start: What would a female Dionysus look like, what would happen or change in the process? I find her to be an image of personal sovereignty, charisma and self-expression.

• THIS PAINTING COMES ALREADY FRAMED in red wooden box frame