Shoutout to the art teacher who fought me on using a limited palette

I was at a community college workshop in Austin last spring and this older teacher kept insisting I ditch my 12-color set for just 3 primaries plus white. She said, "You're hiding behind all those tubes, not learning how colors actually mix." I argued back that more options gave me freedom, but after a week of forced limited palettes, my shadows looked way more natural. So which side do you fall on - more pigments for speed or fewer for deeper understanding?

3 comments

3 Comments

alicebarnes12d ago

I took a painting class at UT Austin back in 2015 and my instructor said the same thing. I actually HATED it at first but after like two weeks my color mixing got way better. I still keep a bigger palette for quick stuff though.

lucaslane12d ago

Yo, "HATED it at first" is exactly how I felt too. Like, I remember standing there with my tiny palette feeling like I was being punished or something. But man, it really does force you to learn how colors actually work together instead of just grabbing whatever is already mixed. I still keep a bigger palette for quick stuff, but I honestly mix way better now because of those weeks of suffering through it.

ray21012d ago

@lucaslane brings up a good point about quick stuff. I read somewhere that professional painters often keep a bigger palette just for blocking in colors fast before refining with limited mixes. Limited palettes might be a pain at first but they teach you more about color than any 12-tube set ever will.