Canadian_anarchist

Portraits were definitely “improved” by artists to make the person look thinner, paler, etc. The happier the customer, the more likely they would get work within their elite inner circle (portraits were a luxury, not common for most of history).

They were done by skilled people with training though. Early paints were not easy to use as they were not nicely mixed in metal tubes. They had to be manually mixed pigments and binders (many containing lead and mercury).

Repeating fungus gnats as the answer. I use a few strategies to manage them:

• yellow “sticky strips” (can be purchased at garden stores and Amazon) that you stick into the pot. They’re ugly, but the flies love them.
• dish soap bath for plants that can handle it (the blue Dawn extra strong soap is best).
• bottom watering, or letting the top of the soil dry out between waterings

Humid environments require lighter watering. You might want to get a soil moisture detector so you can see how moist your soil really is and determine if you need to water.