Palettes

Doctors’ offices are great places to catch up on reading. I was glancing through a book on colour and came across the section on how to lay out a palette and the thought occurred to me that that might be a topic of interest for some people as not many watercolourists I know do things exactly the way I do them. So here is how I lay out my colours. I keep lids off jars of jam, pickles, condiments, anything that has a white interior so I can better see the colour wash within it. I squirt some water into each lid and add the colour I choose from the moistened tray to the point of intensity I wish. A test paper is essential to determine the intensity. I keep adding colour until I am satisfied. I repeat the process with each colour so that the colours I choose each have a brush, a wash and the original block. Some artists squeeze the watercolour straight out of the tube for greater intensity. I find I can make use of every bit and have very intense colour if I fill my tray, let it dry and moisten it just before I paint. Intensity comes from the quality of the paint as the higher the quality the greater the pigment content. I also limit the number of colours I use at one time. With the painting I am working on at the moment only six colours are set out with their washes. There is a seventh brush which I use to soften edges or add paler layers of pigment in certain areas. I rarely mix colours before I put them on the paper. Instead I begin with one wash and drop in other colours while it is still wet so that the mingling and mixing occurs right before my eyes. It is such fun watching the colours swirl. When I leave for the day I know that my lids, brushes and tray will be dry by the time I return. I simply add water and carry on. Love it!