Should I Trust You?

Fan Art
Title:	Should I Trust You?
Artist:	Shelley Butler
Date(s):	2005
First Published:
Medium:
Genre/Style:
Fandom:	Star Trek: TOS
External Links:
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Should I Trust You? is an illo by Shelley Butler.

It portrays Spock and an original character.

It was printed in In the Shade #2.

Fan Comments

I loved all of the art in In the Shade, but this is my favorite piece. It depicts Spock with Deverans, a Vulcan healer. Spock is in the foreground and his head is bowed, his eyes are closed, and the expression on his face—a mixture of frustration, anguish, anger, and uncertainty— is just right, considering what is happening in the novel at this point. He is naked, and though the picture stops just below his navel, we do get to see his prominent collar bones, lightly muscled arms, well-defined ribs, and the stripe of dark hair that runs down the middle of his torso. (And speaking of hair, as usual, Shelley's technique of layering many, many fine lines creates a very realistic effect whether she's drawing that stripe down Spock's middle, his eyelashes and eyebrows, or the hair on his head.) Even though I'm always happy to see more of Spock, I think that making this a full length portrait would have been a mistake, because the focus should be on Spock's face and including more of him would have been a distraction. Deverans is also very nicely portrayed, which I find quite impressive, because he is one of Jenna's original characters. I don't know if Shelley used a model for this portrait, but however she did it, this man really looks like a Vulcan, not like a human with Vulcan ears and eyebrows tacked on. The way he holds his body is definitely Vulcan; his bangs and the shape of his face seem very Vulcan also, even though they are different from Spock's. And the expression on Deveran's face is perfect too: there are no blatant signs of emotion in his features, but you can tell from the intensity of his gaze that he cares deeply about Spock. (And Deverans, by the way, is almost as attractive as Spock. Yum.) Every time I look at this portrait (and I've looked at it a lot!) I marvel over Shelley's talent, skill, and dedication to her art.