Morning Glory is perfect for this painting, with its heart shaped leaves, wonderfully colourful flowers and reputation as a plant that opens doorways to other worlds. It’s a fragile flower that lasts for a short time, but one that blooms profusely upon a vine that spreads fast and grows all over the world. Although I haven’t yet started on the right hand side I’m considering subtly putting a vine around the Empress’ ankle, as if it’s holding her back from passing through the pillars.
The ivy and the Morning Glory are both rendered in grey at the moment, although I’ve roughly added white veining into the ivy leaves so there’s a bit of variety to the painted surface. I’m looking forward to getting some colour onto these leaves, which I think will add a great deal to the painting.
