What color palette do you use?

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1

For several years I’ve been using a piece of glass as a palette and underneath I put a piece of canvas paper painted with the same mid-value neutral color I used to tone my canvases, thinking it would be better for mixing colors and values accurately. I’m now working on setting up another palette and I’m wondering what color to choose.

I see white palettes are common, but I’m wondering if this would make mixing correct values more difficult, unless of course you are painting on an equally white ground. I also see wooden palettes and I’m wondering if this warmer color would cause you to make your mixes cooler than they need to be (assuming you are NOT painting on a wood-colored ground). Then again, I see some painters using palettes so incrusted with years of paint that they look like rainbows…

Any thoughts on palette color vis-a-vis the color of the ground you are working with? Does it really make any difference for mixing correct hue and value?

2

Hi Thomas. I have a palette like that too, and I chose a mid value gray paper to tape onto the back of the glass. I also drew a grid on it to lay out value strings.

3

That grid sounds interesting. Do you have a pic of your palette?

4

IMG_0473
IMG_04733024×4032 2.44 MB

Not the best pic, but you get the idea…

5

Thanks. That’s a great idea. I bet that keeps your mixing nice and organized. I could use a little of that…