More Morris

Well, it took me until Saturday afternoon to create the time, but I finally managed to finish a piece for the Diva's current challenge, "More Morris" (Challenge 19 already, for those who want to know!).  This was a challenge for me, not only due to time.  I don't usually place a great emphasis on black grounds in my work and I had to keep this in the forefront of my mind while creating the design.  I found it needed to be a constant and deliberate choice for me - who knew that linework was so much more natural an expression for me?  Also, it would have been much easier to work in my usual style and simply use a white pen on a black ground, but I was trying to stretch and do something different with this piece.  The Morris effect that's been under recent discussion is the technique he employed to great effect, of working in "spots of light" on a dark ground.  This gives the work of William Morris great depth and dimension as well as a more complex textural effect.  So this is what I was aiming for.  Unfortunately, I'm not very happy with the way the white gel pen (Sakura Gelly Roll) went down over the black ground (Sakura Pigma Micron).  Perhaps I should have let the black ink cure overnight before adding the white accents...hmmm.  Food for thought and future experimentation.  At any rate, enjoy (I hope - crossing fingers*G*)!

Happy Saturday!