subject: The Ideal Artist's Studio Palette [print this page] The ideal studio palette is non-absorbent, roomy, easy to remove paint from, flat and stays in place. I have found that tempered glass is the ideal answer for this.
Over the years I have used both white and gray palettes. Most painters are used to a white palette, but that contrast may distort your color judgment. When I start a painting I want to cover the white of the canvas as quickly as possible for this reason. So a medium neutral gray is a better back ground since it shows the color better, I prefer that and recommend trying a neutral gray palette,
My tempered glass palettes are available in two sizes, 12" x 16" and 14"x 20", both have smooth top surfaces, the glass is tempered for toughness, all the edges are ground smooth and the bottom surface is back coated with either white or neutral gray. Four stick on rubber feet are included.
Tempered glass is perfect for any artist's paint. Oil, acrylic, guache, alkyd, water based oils, etc. The glass will not absorb the oil or moisture out of the paint.
These pallets give you plenty of room to lay out your paint and still have plenty of mixing room. To clean, either wipe or scrap clean with a razor scraper, my deluxe scraper provides an extra long formed shank, a large handle and a thumb screw to make blade changes easy.
Personally I use a 14 x 20 gray backed pallet and really like it! These are a "Lifetime Tool" and you will never have to replace it.
