I want to talk about the experience of painting portraits of real people — specific individuals rather than generic figure studies — because the relational dimension changes both the process and the stakes.

Painting someone you know: you carry a preexisting image of the person that competes with what you're observing. I have to consciously suspend my mental image of a friend and look at what's actually in front of me or in the reference photograph. The pre-existing knowledge helps with expression but can distort proportion.

Painting someone you don't know: purely observational. The stranger's face is just form. There's no affective distortion. The work is often more objectively accurate.

The commission portrait context: you're being paid to produce a specific likeness that satisfies the client. The client may have a very specific image of the subject. The technical accuracy is necessary but not sufficient — the portrait needs to satisfy the client's emotional image of the person.

The ethics: I always confirm before completing a portrait commission that the subject knows the portrait is being made and consents to it. I decline commissions where this isn't confirmed.