Art for Strampunch: A Precarious Sort of Balance

Dec. 9th, 2019 05:06 pm
holmesticemods: (Default)
[personal profile] holmesticemods posting in [community profile] holmestice
Title: A Precarious Sort of Balance
Recipient: [personal profile] strampunch
Artist: [personal profile] natrix_natrix
Verse: Doyle - Canon
Characters/Pairings: Sherlock Holmes/John Watson
Rating: mild to moderate violence or depictions of non-sexual mature themes
Warnings: Implied/Referenced Drug Use
Summary: Holmes may refuse to give up the needle, but he does let Watson tend to his arm during his dark moods. To keep his doctor's heart at peace.



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Date: 2019-12-09 10:35 pm (UTC)
oldshrewsburyian: (Default)
From: [personal profile] oldshrewsburyian
Oh, this is so lovely and poignant! I love the detail you've lavished on their waistcoats, as well as their expressions.

Date: 2019-12-09 11:08 pm (UTC)
smallhobbit: (Holmes Watson 221B)
From: [personal profile] smallhobbit
You convey so much through their expressions and I do like the waistcoats.

Date: 2019-12-09 11:16 pm (UTC)
write_out: (Default)
From: [personal profile] write_out
Thirding expressions/waistcoats love! This is gorgeous! The colors and the details are fantastic. Thank you for sharing this!

Date: 2019-12-09 11:47 pm (UTC)
rachelindeed: Havelock Island (Default)
From: [personal profile] rachelindeed
Oh, beautiful! I love that there is no reproach on Watson's face, only gentleness and care; Holmes is the one who looks sad, but at the same time you can see how he can't keep his fingers from curling at Watson's touch. I really appreciate this theme of how intimacy can exist so powerfully even in moments that are troubled and sad, rather than happy and romantic. Love doesn't always look like Romance; sometimes it looks like care and regret and acceptance. Meeting each other in a dark place and knowing they're together there. Thank you for the beautiful art.

Date: 2019-12-09 11:48 pm (UTC)
magnetic_pole: (Default)
From: [personal profile] magnetic_pole
A lovely mix of symmetry and difference! Well done. M.

Date: 2019-12-10 12:01 am (UTC)
scfrankles: knight on horseback with lance lowered (Default)
From: [personal profile] scfrankles
Your picture is so beautifully done. I really admire its balance of hope and poignancy. Holmes’ expression seems to be one of resignation, but Watson’s face shows a calm certainty. He is a doctor, Holmes is his patient, and he knows he can get him through this episode. But the composition also seems to indicate that despite this doctor-patient relationship, they will always be equals. Both standing facing each other, in waistcoats with their shirt sleeves rolled up - even if that is for very different reasons.

I love Holmes’ strong profile, and I really like your version of Watson - it feels so close to ACD’s description of him in CHAS. And adding to all the praise for the waistcoats - they’re gorgeous and they temper the sadness of the picture a little.

Date: 2019-12-10 05:20 am (UTC)
mightymads: (arminarm)
From: [personal profile] mightymads
Holmes’s expression, so sad and vulnerable, especially his eyes. And Watson’s quiet acceptance, perhaps gratitude that Holmes allows him to take care of the punctures. The contrast of Holmes’s pale skin against Watson’s warmer hue. Watson resembling ACD with his stoutness, haircut, and moustache—it resonates with me on a separate level because many of my headcanons about Watson are based on ACD’s best qualities (since it was a self-insert fanfic and all). Perhaps Watson was a better, kinder version of ACD. Beautifully done. Thank you so much!

Date: 2019-12-10 07:40 am (UTC)
gardnerhill: (Default)
From: [personal profile] gardnerhill
Gorgeous and sad. That look of pained professionalism on Watson and Holmes' stoic regret.

Date: 2019-12-10 07:46 am (UTC)
a_candle_for_sherlock: (Default)
From: [personal profile] a_candle_for_sherlock
Just gorgeous. The quiet intimacy in this, and the trust. The physicality of the piece is beautiful too—textured waistcoats, Watson’s solidity, Holmes’ receding widow’s peak. The release of Holmes’ hand strikes me especially—that entirely restful curl of his fingers around the palm that means he’s entirely relaxed, not braced or on guard, confident in Watson’s gentleness.

Date: 2019-12-11 07:12 pm (UTC)
strampunch: h/w_01 (Default)
From: [personal profile] strampunch
I am... in absolute awe.
Apologies for not having commented on my own gift earlier, I've been insanely busy. But I've been opening this image on my google search every hour or so to look at it and clutch at my chest.
I have to second and third everyone's comments on the print used on the waistcoats, it's such a nice touch... just like Watson's watch chain, the purple shade on Holmes' needle marks and the shape of his hair. The hands are delightful and I can't stop looking at them. Their expressions are so soft, full of unspoken feelings. I love the coloring style, so warm and simple... it's hard to pull off and you did a wonderful job. I desperately want to know what happens before and after this image, so I might have to draw a scene surrounding this in the future <3
A thousand thank yous, this is the best "secret Santa" gift I've ever gotten.

Date: 2019-12-18 04:11 am (UTC)
ancientreader: deep blue sky with scattered clouds (prospect park sky)
From: [personal profile] ancientreader
Such tenderness in a difficult moment, and you show it beautifully.
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