Ayla (o dell’ingoiare il rospo)

Ayla (or Swallowing the Toad)

Year: 2025

Ayla stands poised between innocence and confrontation, cradling a glass jar with a large toad inside. Her gaze is unwavering—calm, yet heavy with a quiet resistance. On the table beside her rests a delicate cake adorned with roses, untouched and pristine, a symbol of sweetness and celebration held in stark contrast to the visceral image she holds.

This piece plays with the Italian idiom “ingoiare il rospo” (to swallow the toad), which speaks of enduring something bitter or unpleasant in silence. Ayla doesn’t swallow the toad—she holds it, studies it, acknowledges it. There’s no denial, only a raw, serene awareness of what must be endured.

The atmosphere is suspended, the trees in the background bare and spectral, evoking a fairytale gone askew. The image speaks of emotional maturity and the painful grace of accepting what one cannot change. There’s a tension between the external stillness and the inner turmoil, between the ritual of celebration and the reality of sacrifice.

Ayla invites us to sit with discomfort, to face what is unpalatable, and in doing so, reclaim a quiet kind of power.

Canvas with hand painted details – Limited edition

. Size: 60×80 cm
. Edition: 10 copies
. Support: mounted canvas with oil/acrylic details
. Signed + certificate of authenticity
Available on request

Fine art print – Limited edition

. Size: 50×70 cm or 30×40 cm
. Edition: 30 copies
Available for preorder