Melissa emailed me a couple of reference photos for the portrait swap. Before receiving them, my intentions were to do a very classical style portrait. Then I opened my email and saw the pictures she sent. This one stood out immediately. I was stricken by the dichotomous nature of the photo. Both a sense of humour, and the slightest look of menace. It appealed to me immediately. I loved the picture, but couldn't figure out at first how to approach it. Then it came to me in a sudden rush of inspiration. Mix the loose and raw style of a knife painting, with the rigid and clean look of pop. This way it would match the humour and menace. Duality. That's what this painting is about. It helped tremendously that Melissa told me her house was an eclectic collection of work. Perfect. In order to achieve the look I was going for, I had to rely on a bit of psychology. Subconsciously people tend not to trust people whose features are not symmetric. The second instinct of the same is to find it humourous. So, I altered her features ever so slightly, but significantly, to match the desired effect. I truly love the way this came out.