What is your palette?

[Richard Bingham]

It was interesting to me that in his April workshop, Bill Whitaker noted that some of the painters whose set-palettes are complex re-creations of a full Munsell scale were at first pastellists . . . the method of working suggests the comfort with a really extensive set-palette.

Personally, I think it's efficient to "set" a limited palette for the task at hand, and it will vary depending on the details of the subject.

Color is "personal" and so subjective, the "tricks" of referred color, relative hues, etc., etc. are infinite, and play a part in each individual's development of color in their work. Look over these color lists, they don't vary much . . .

[Michele Rushworth]

I use something like the Paxton palette, I guess, though not through any specific intention. I have just always gravitated to having about 12 to 15 colors on my palette. It seems like a comfortable array. The core colors are like the Paxton ones, more or less, with a few additions now and then depending on my subject.

Tony Ryder, who uses 42 colors on his palette at last count, does it for convenience and time savings. He talks about why people buy grocery items like mustard rather than buying the various ingredients and combining them at home to make their own mustard. It saves time.

I put my palette in the freezer at the end of the day and the only one that dries up faster than I can use it is burnt umber. Then again, I paint every day and use up quite a bit of paint in a week.

[Claudemir Bonfim]

Here it goes...

ivory black
viridian
sap green
cerulean blue
ultramarine blue
raw umber
burnt sienna
raw sienna
yellow ochre
naples yellow
cad yellow light
cad red light
alizarin crimson
mixed white (titanium and zinc)