Lintire's art Reviews on Newgrounds

[Robot Battle]

Brilliant, but "Empty"

Submitting this to Robot Day was a very good idea; and its a very good piece, stands up on its own.

You've demonstrated a good ability, even great, to represent form and three-dimensional spaces with the clever use of shading. It's a fairly basic skill to be able to represent geometric instances using digital painting, but it's one you don't actually often see on Newgrounds, and you've definitely managed to out it to good use.

I'm definitely digging the designs that you have going on; the use of insectoid designs is always a plus to robots, and while the resemblance is clear you've actually twisted it in a clever way that I haven't actually seen before; emphasizing width was a good move.

However, if there's anything that I have a problem with, its the composition. While the background isn't actually needed at all, and the use of foregrounds props was definitely a good move, the entire piece is entirely too sparse.

As is, it looks as if you've simple clocked out of a lot of work, instead of really using the composition to the max - and even then, that's just a minor concern, you've done a great job. Peace out.

[A Day at the Office]

Visceral Apprehension

If there's anything to summarize about the picture, it's that it really does look as if it were too ambitious and that you simply didn't really have the time to sink into it to truly make it memorable.

You've done a good job, Toas, that's for sure. I like the animation (or should I say dynamicness? character?) of each individual character, the implied story behind the picture, and that the way that you've managed to work via indication in the farther parts of the image really does help to unite attention to the focal point.

However, a piece like this needs variety, and a really dynamic pose. Which is to say, that if you were to have done it again, you might want to be looking at either really centering the piece around the individual robot (we'll call him Dave) or have the picture be akin to a landscape piece, with Dave as a long figure among a hundred. The really be dynamic with it.

But as is, it works, and it works well. It's a shame that you haven't gotten more recognition for this piece, unless you've just submitted it and I've made myself out ot be a total douche. Let it be known that as of now, it has ~200 views.

Great work, man!

[Elk's Deathwing]

Pixel Art just got badass...

Well, holy crap. You know, at first glance, this looks like a digital painting? As in, pretty damn good, but for 410 hours? I would have expected something more along the lines of 40. Because digital painting is pretty fuck-easy like that (once you learn, of course).

Then I took a closer look at, well, pixel art? Seriously, Pixel Art? And then suddenly everything made sense.

I wouldn't worry about the people at NG picking you at on the ever-so-minor flaws. we're not exactly high-brow art enthusiasts. But seriously, great work, and a damn fine story behind it, too! The shear amount of texture, and colour management, is seriously nothing short of, well, fucking amazing!

Why the hell isn't Blizzard promoting this right now and promoting you for spending more time on their universe then most people spend on their games. Which includes me - I have no idea who this character is.

Brilliance, simply that, and I'm glad that you finally got it done, finally managed to share this with the world. And I'm glad to be one of the first on NG to see it, too :3

ElkDarkshire responds:

Thank you alot for your comment :)

Yeah, digital painting is easier, but I chose Pixelart because you have absolute control over every single pixel, and that makes pixelart so nice I think :)...

Of course, it's not always about super detailed goals and such...but this was my aim, to get to a really smooth result!

[Flood the Portal 8 - Dinosaurs]

TRIPPING MOTHERFUCKING FERN LEAVES

Everything I'm going to say, as well as everything that Wayne said, can easily be summarized into "Don't fucking do it in the last 40 minute before the Flood because the result is kind of gay".

But hopefully I can actually go ahead and fit a few things about the picture that aren't obvious in there as well.

It's obvious that the picture was rushed - it shows on many, many levels, and the entire picture suffers as a result of this. this, you know.

What perhaps you didn't know that this make a perfect example of the type of shading that you've chosen to use, and its a good excuse to go out into the world and study a little "Colour Theory" - soemthing that every artist who wants to colour their pictures should look into.

You've started off with a mild colour to begin with, something respectable. But, looking at the shading below the neck, you can see that the shading goes from cool colours to warm back to cool - a mix which simply, isn't working out. Next time you shade, you'll want to make sure that yours colouring is consistent - that it goes from warm to cool or vise versa, or simply stays in one of the two regions.

The lighter green aura around the eye is also another example of poor Colour Theory - when already starting with a mild colour, it doesn't make sense to go from mild to lighter back to mild again, an it jars with the rest of the colours. When using lighter colours, make sure to use them in places where the light source would realistically hit - in this case, more likely then not, up on the dino's head instead of in and around his eye.

Course, these points are just that - points - that can be bent or broken, so long as they're mean tto be - I've seen some truly stunning psychedelic pictures while looking for art that do just that, However, it doesn't look like you were trying to bend the rules, and if you were, you might to get some practice at it.

There's also that these points don't exactly matter int he face of that the amount of rushed that you did sort of renders these previous points moot, but I'd thought I'd put them there anyway, as food for thought.

Congratulations on contributing with dedication to procrastination, spaghetti, and its a shame this Flood sort of went out with a tinkle. i kind of feel a bit responsible for that.

Spags responds:

Jesus, that's a big review for such a shitty piece! Thanks linty :)

To start off in my defense, I don't think the main linework is too terrible. That's about all I will defend though.

I agree with all the coloring, some of it was a mistake, and some of it messed up when I converted from cmyk to rgb, losing the effect. I know exactly what you are talking about, and recognize my mistakes. I still am not great at coloring, and I find it very frustrating, but I thank you for your valiant effort to school me in the ways of successful coloring.

Also, I too am saddened by the lack of flood participation this month. Twas a bit disappointing. Anyways, thanks for the review :)

[Wow, Stickam...]

moar like "dicks i am", amirite?

Every party is depressing when only a half dozen people show up in the first place. Life's like that.

For the piece, it's pretty much as simple as they get - not too bad at all, for something so simple, either. The few extra lines make the difference without overburdening the final result, either, much like Marvel's ever so famous background "dit-dits". As a piece goes, it isn't bad at all, and it's not like you lose points being late in uploading it.

The main "flaw" with the picture is really just how simply it is - and I don't understand how you managed to spend 4 hours on it. A single character with elements of a background is a good look to go for, but characters thrive on detail, small elements of personality that really bring out the shine, not just the overall shape.

The overall shape is, however, quite charming, has a nice geometric flair to it and is very much enhanced by the colourful shading and simple additions - in order to add detail to a character, you usually have to change the shape around, well, a lot. The emotion in the character is well displayed, a touch on the mild side, just enough to really bring out the "pissed-off" in the picture.

And I agree. Stickam sucks.

Would say that, in order to really enhance the picture, you'd work on refining in on go from there - that is, gradually adding contours and more consistent line depth to the lineart, working on the shadows to make the dark parts dark and the light parts lighter (as in, a bit more contrast would do the trick) and start adding the odd highlight, and go from there.

But hey, good work, Kashi! This is a fine addition to the Flood, however depressing that Flood may have been.

[Colour Experimenting]

Cheer up, emo chick.

Funny what you can achieve with a few simple colours - and you've done really well in that respect, the minimalism really helps to add to this, and the entire watercolour "feel" to the picture results in something the likes of which you don't often see on Newgrounds.

However, in more then one respect, it does feel a bit too simple - that the picture itself, to the angling, really does feel like a picture that's just been... simplified. Nothing incredibly special, but it does make an impact of sorts.

Still, all the same, great work and it really is something different.

[Slugster]

Indie title of sorts.

Great colour choice, shadows and highlights as per usual, adamkav, and the expression is priceless - although I don't remembering hipsters being visually crazy so much as "too cool".

The headphones don't really fit in with the slug - don't really blend, and the coloring between them makes it a bit obvious that you did them separately. The lack of a background doesn't "take away" from the picture - but the lack of one more or less puts down the picture as a simple entity in itself, which is fine, but on the grander scale limits it's mind-blowingness.

All-in-all, it's a great work and a crazy one at that - which, considering, is very "you". Great work, and an amusing theme. Added points for keeping the signature discreet but noticeable at the same time in soem warping of the ethereal realms.

[in the era of the che]

<Insert witty title here>

The pixelation behind the main focus doesn't really fit in with the mood of the picture - without a little more pixelation in the background and such like, doesn't so much add as subtract away from the picture and that's really a shame, because you've done a great job with it. The headphone cord also sticks out like a sore thumb.

The simply coloring and background really help to add depth and concentration on the text, so it would really, really be good for use in animation and the like, and as for a logo - well, anythings possible.

All the same, good work. Doesn't really come off as it's own product, though, so on the grand scale of things you can't really compare this to more in-depth, arty works, but in-itself it's a great job.

[The walls of insanity]

O bai, Sanity.

Better work on your English, man, your description was pretty much unreadable.

Anyway, nice picture - everything from the rotated picture itself, to the minor details, the textures that you've managed to plaster all over everything with your inking pen - all of it, good, and it all adds in to the final result - which is pretty damn good. Specially love the "walls of insanity", makes the room look like a 3-dimensional corspeyard, one made more out of morbid fascination then anything else. The focal point, the hold in the glass wall, even the seemingly and utterly random tiki face, all add into this overall look, this Boneyard made house.

However, you could change a few things with it, get that complete look just right, and all. The inking pen itself let's up at bits, and while the look is definitely intact upon closer inspection the picture loses a little of it's luster to this - you may have wanted to Photoshop it, to get the shades of black completely right. The window could have used a scene behind it, the walls more decoration (more surreal objects plastered everywhere would have done the trick) and the scanner that you've used has actually done a pretty shoddy job of cleaning up the edges of the page.

Now, these all could have better contributed to a final picture, but as it stands it's still pretty damn epic. Great work man, you've really done a great job on this.

[apples]

Dat apples.

Right, man, defiantly not too bad a coloured sketch - the apples are well-drawn, very much your style while still being realistic, and have nice shading and postioning within the drawing.

However, rating this on the art Portal scale, it'll only come to six at most - it really is just a small life sketch, with not much oomph behind it at all - had you gone ahead and sketched an entire room, with all the details at this level, then yeah, that would be a wow, but as it is it's a little insubstantial.

The technique and quality level is fine as-is, just, well, sketch more of it - sketch more of the surroundings, hell, more fruit. Add the room, with it's windows, and just more, well, stuff.

It's a good picture, man, there's just not nearly enough in it.