One of the best things about being an artist is the beauty I see everywhere.
When I was cleaning one of my palettes this past week, the running colors were so gorgeous, I had to capture them with a photo.
(Note: I paint with water-soluble oil paints, so I can clean them in the sink without toxic cleaners such as turpentine. My cleaning product of choice is Incredible Pink, a biodegradable general cleaner from Maine.)
The photo shows my palette in the sink. The picture was taken without a flash.
From left to right on my palette, here are the colors I routinely use for my paintings:
French ultramarine blue
Alizarin crimson
Cadmium red
Cadmium orange
Cadmium yellow
Lemon yellow
Pthalo blue
White (sometimes Zinc white, sometimes Titanium white)
I also add Sap green and/or Burnt umber for some paintings.
Of course, in the photo above, you can see the residue of lots of mixing on every square inch of the palette.
In a way, this is art, all by itself.