Dark Mandalas V5 is taking its own sweet time (like its predecessors).

I just spent an hour drawing part of page four in Dark Mandalas Volume 5. As I was drawing, I found myself trying to put into words why these mandalas take so long.

Because they do.

Each one feels like it's being pulled unwillingly from my brain, and they tire my eyes more quickly than other mandalas.

Here are a few reasons why:

1 - Most of the time, I'm drawing outlines and people color the space between my lines. It's easy to visualize what that space will look like. With Dark Mandalas, the line itself is also the coloring space. That makes every line placement more impactful.

2 - To make the lines broad enough to be visible against the black background, I use a wide brush. This creates very rounded corners, which I'm never satisfied with, so I go back in with a small white brush and sharpen them all.

3 - Then I go back in again with a fine black brush and add my signature details.

Not only does this type of design require a different way of thinking, but I'm also making three passes through every mandala to tweak, refine, and add details.

The result speaks for itself.

My Dark Mandalas look stunning when they're colored.

They're also a lot of work.

Which probably explains why page four is currently taking forever.