River of flames

Wyn, this is my first critique and I chose this piece of yours because I've known your art quite since I got into Naruto a year ago. I needed some time to get used to the hard, rather edgy features you typically lend Sasuke, and also the surreal elements you somethimes include, like the melting pools of colors in this particular picture. But the longer I look at a picture like this one, the more it makes me muse about Sasuke and all his inner conflicts and feelings.

First I asked myself why Sasuke is upside down here. It catches the eye. Second, some kind of red and orange and blue liquid seems to run out of his sleeve and down his clothes. Makes me think of blood in the first instance, but it's open for interpretation. He seems wounded. Yet, his expression is neglecting that, it's like saying "Don't touch me". He looks angry but not really aggressive, rather a little bit like someone has invaded his personal space and seen something he doesn't want the other to see. I always try to twist my head around to take his expression in. Like I said before, the longer I look at this picture, the more I think about every little aspect of his personality, and the picture actually promotes this kind of insight. Given your love for the character, you're basically honoring him by making people process his anger and vulnerability so intensely.

I do think, however, that his facial features seem a little off, especially his eyes, he looks squinting. This is a small thing which I only realized when I kind of made a headstand in front of the screen to really see his expression better. xD The proportions and size of the hand are rendered well, yet it looks a little flat. Last thing that I think you could work on is his hair. In the back of his head, his strands of hair look slightly unnatural, which only caught my attention because the rest of him is drawn in a very naturalistic style. Maybe it's the hair's texture that isn't very consistent on the whole. It seems like you were trying out different ways to paint hair, and couldn't decide. But hair is a pain to draw anyway, I really know - and Sasuke's hair all the more.

Technically, I think this is very well done. The shading of his face and clothing looks very lively and real, and personally, I also like the vivid colors. And no, I don't think you went overboard with the red, it puts life into the picture. The picture is not drawn in a dark way at all, which is a contrast to his character as a 16-year-old. It shows Sasuke's dark side in his expression, his anger, but also tells you that there is some hope for him, too, because in the end, he's a wounded creature who just tries to deal with everything the way he can. And he takes the way that is plausible to him, given everything he has experienced.

(Oh, the hell. And I have to rate it on those stupid categories, too. DA's system is not very encouraging for serious improvement. Reducing a work to some silly points. Impact only rated so low because I needed some time to get into that painting. Please don't give too many fucks about it.)