What type of Palette board to use?

[Ngaire Winwood]

Dear Mary, Enzie and Allan

All of your own take on palettes is very interesting and thanks for sharing.

Enzie and Mary, would you be so kind as to add photos of your palette as well as it is always interesting to see what others work with.

Allan, I like the idea of having a grey scale underneath as well for clarity when mixing, great photo your studio looks so neat.

I didn't realise that one's choice of underpainting was the choice for the colour under a palette, thanks Mary for highlighting this.

The paper trick sounds easier for clean up than the glass.

Enzie, I am intrigued with Marvin's palette and haven't quite understood his rows just yet. From previous threads, I remember it is based on cool, warm colours and differing values being prior mixed but I suppose without knowing how to use them on your work it will stay a bit of a mystery. I imagine you lay a warm/cool colour next to each other for illuminosity of colour. Am I close?

[Ngaire Winwood]

Mary

Thanks for the link. I stumbled upon this one about a year ago and haven't been back to it since. I had forgotten how good it is and how well the explanations are. I tried to download it so I can read it later but the graphics never came with it, much the pity.

[Debra Norton]

Ngaire, I use a wood palette made by Lee Boynton. I keep mine clean, some of my fellow students have let theirs become grey or reddish brown by just smearing the paint around on it at the end of the day. I really have no reason for keeping mine clean except that I'm kind of a neat freak and I like it that way. It seems to me that you'll get used to whatever you choose to use. I had to use a cheap, heavy, lighter colored palette the other day and it made me realize how much I depend on the color of my good one.

About using white under glass, I think it depends on how you paint. If you tone or do a lay-in immediately, you no longer have a reason to have a white palette because you're not working on a white surface.

[Ngaire Winwood]

Thanks Deb.

It intrigued me to think that if I used a different coloured underpainting ranging from greys to sienna or even white etc, would one change their board to suit.

It looks as though artists have their favourite and just stick with it whether the underpainting colour is changed or not, like you mentioned.

[Mary Jane Ansell]

Glad to link was of interest Ngaire,

I will try to get a chance to post a photo of my palette but can't seem to get a moment just yet...

I must admit I do sometimes change the palette and ground to grey, for example when I work on smaller life studies at night, it gives such a different feel to the work (which I guess is very much the key to what kindof palette/ground one ends up preffering) but as I say generally I paint almost Alla Prima onto the white canvas so establishing the colour and values immediately.

It's been very interesting to hear other peoples preferences.