Will had indeed struggled to read Fang Zhao, but he had been able to capture the complexity of his inner turmoil—not entirely, but at least a part of it. That was already a big success. To capture the full extent of Fang Zhao's complexity would require further refinement of his painting skills.
So for Will, the painting was a form of incremental progress, the equivalent of a draft. He hadn't taken it too seriously.
Will had attained his short-term goal of tackling a portrait of Fang Zhao. At least Fang Zhao was within his grasp. He could produce some semblance of a portrait of Fang Zhao. But Curly Hair fell outside his comfort zone.
