The Limited Palette

Ever since I began to paint, I have used a limited palette. That means that I use only a few primary colors, plus white, to mix all of the other colors in my paintings. Despite what the name might suggest, it is actually not limiting at all. On the contrary, it is very liberating to know that you can mix almost any color from the six or so tubes of paint you carry.  And it certainly lightens the load when you go out on location.

Kathleen Dunphy has written a great post on the advantages of the limited palette. Like many artists, she started using a large number of tube paints, but ultimately found her way to the limited palette. Thankfully, I never had to wean myself from a big Crayola box of paint tubes!

The accomplished Lori Putnam uses only three colors plus white. Someday I may be bold enough to try this. You can read Lori's "how and why" of her limited palette here. Here is a photo illustrating how Lori sets up her palette:

Look how much simpler and more organized this is than the photo at the top of the post! 

What's on my palette? A light and a dark of each primary color. I have written previously about my primaries. For yellows, Cadmium Yellow Light (light) and Raw Umber (dark). For reds, Cadmium Red Light (light) and Alizarin Crimson (dark). For blues, Cerulean Blue (light) and Ultramarine Blue (dark). I also use Burnt Sienna, and occasionally (as a "convenience color") Yellow Ochre. I'm a true believer in the power of the limited palette!