Semi-limited Palette

                                                                                           Acrylic, 5x7"

I enjoyed painting this, but it looks a good bit like the photograph, which as I have said, isn't really what I want to be doing.  I really did like this photograph, though, so maybe that is why it was kind of fun to paint.

I forgot to tell you that ever since that workshop where I painted the seated artist (post of July 29), I have been using a semi-limited palette.  I think a typical artist palette is two blues, two reds, two yellows (a cool and warm version of each color) plus white.  Since we were painting in between storms, I used a limited palette to do the artist painting I like so much (limited palette by default).  I can't exactly remember what colors I used, but basically used whatever was left on my palette, which was a little of one blue, one red, and one yellow.

I liked the results and I liked not having to wonder whether to choose the warm of cool version of a color each time I needed a new mixture.  So, I decided since then to simplify my mixing and just use one red, one yellow, and one blue, and white PLUS my own addition of orange, because I really like having a premixed orange to make greys with.  I'm calling the palette semi-limited because of the addition of orange.  The orange moves me to the warm in a way my other colors do not.   Maybe a kind of strange choice, but I am really liking using these colors.  I imagine I will keep using this palette until I can see for myself what I am missing by leaving any of the other colors out, then will add them back in if I really know what I need them for.  Until I know what I am missing, I don't really need them.