Portal Vein #1

This painting represents all of the portal system from a more abstract standpoint. The portal vein comes up from the bottom to bring the nutrients from the rest of the digestive system. The branches go to the segments of the liver so that the nutrients can be absorbed at the hepatocycte (read: functional cellular unit) level. 

Squiggles on the mat represent the endothelial cells that make the channels to let the nutrients out to be stored in the liver.