More Christmas Cactus

I follow many artists on social media and study their work for inspiration. Someone I especially admire is Menina Ricci; particularly for the way she uses color and brushwork. She often paints with gouache on black paper and you can see her work on instagram. After following Menina Ricci for half of the year I bought some new supplies and today began to sketch in her style.

One of our old Christmas cactus plants is in a blue and white ceramic pot that is shaped like a dove. I brought it inside, placed it on a tablecloth and sketched it off and on through the day as I had time. I enjoy the look of line in a sketch and like the way the black paper outlined my brushstrokes for the cactus and tablecloth. However, the shape of the dove seems overwhelmed by the outline.

This is a pastel and gouache sketch on black Bristol paper.