This is the last installment of our Digital Goes Painting project. Maybe I should mention that this picture of me was a spontaneous snapshot taken by a friend who was just testing a lens, which he then handed over to me – raw files and rights – to use as I wished. I chose it for this project because it’s the only picture that I have ever agreed to have taken and actually liked.

The other week my friend texted me that she had started on this picture but wasn’t sure I really wanted to see it. She said she wasn’t good at portraits.

I said I would definitely want to see it, and she sent me a pic of the black & white painting in the bottom left, still in the making. It only had the head to the left and some of the black bubbly stuff. I was very intrigued and was looking forward to the final work of art.

Then a week later she sent me a step-by-step of the painting on the right, asking me what my shirt colour was. I said black, but she insisted on using colour, so I said dark blue or green were my favourites. Then came the final painting, and again I was amazed.

I love both versions, and I think especially for someone who claimed she wasn’t good at portraits she captured my facial expression perfectly. I expressed the wish to buy both paintings off her. A very happy ending to a fun project.