Drawn in mid-2018, this rose stands as one of my earliest experiments outside of animal portraiture. Classic subjects like a single rose stem provide the perfect playground for mastering fine line details and the delicate gradient transitions that stippling does best.

The natural layering of the petals and the sharp texture of the thorns on the stem offered a beautiful contrast in textures to map out with a fine-liner.

Hand-inked using varying dot densities to capture the soft, velvety shadows tucked within the curling petals while giving the stem and leaves a crisp, defined structure.

This piece marks a time when I was actively pushing myself to see how a traditional, timeless botanical subject could be reimagined with the high contrast of modern dot work. It remains a nostalgic studio classic from my first year of exploring the medium.