"Poignant (Lucy)," 8" square, commissioned pet portrait of a mixed lab, acrylic on canvasboard, possibly sold. Inquiries may come to me via email . It doesn't happen often, but this painting stopped me dead in my tracks. I got about 75% done, and was terrified to go any further. I began to doubt myself. Did I go for the likeness? Did I go with the color? I agonized long enough that my muse packed up and left. It was tough pulling her back into the studio. A pep talk got me on track (thanks to all my twitter peeps who reminded me that it's only paint, I can do this again and again until I get it right, stop overanalyzing, trust in my hand). A handful of Hershey Kisses got the energy level going. A shift in music kept me moving forward (Amy Winehouse can croon lullabys and still drip with attitude). I opted to allow color to take over the painting, but am awaiting the verdict from my client as to whether I lost Lucy's likeness because of t...