Mahkota duri, the crown of thorns plant is intriguing to draw with a pencil because it has unique features in almost every part. The thorny stem with prominent veins, and its brightly coloured inflorescence arranged like a stacked cone, tempted me to explore both its dark and bright sides.

This plant is relatively easy to find, even in our own yards as an ornamental plant, making it easier to recognize. However, not many pencil-based illustrators depict it with varied graphite strokes.Obtaining this subject doesn’t require special handling; it can simply be brought with its pot or cut partially with its stem, complete with its flowering part.

The drawing process is straightforward: sketch directly on the drawing paper, then proceed with shading and necessary detailing using pencils of various sharpness and darkness. This artwork was created entirely using pencils, resulting in black and white nuances with variations in sharpness and darkness to match the existing character and lighting. The media used consisted of 2H, B, 2B, 4B, and 5B pencils on A3 200gsm paper.

The challenge in depicting this artwork lies in visualizing the protruding thorns and veins on the stem as accurately as possible, the thick but soft leaves, and the stacked inflorescence that requires detailed strokes. The thorny crown aims to illustrate to us that despite being full of thorns and producing beautiful flowers in various colours.

The philosophy behind the artwok is to learn to understand life with its thorny crown; despite many sharp thorns in life, we can still enjoy its beauty. So, let’s enjoy the beauty, not the various problems, and then we will be happy.