Home Forums Explore Media Watercolor The Learning Zone Adjusting to the Butcher Tray Palette

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  • #990978
    Undergoose
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        I have almost stopped using all of my little 18-well Mijello airtight palettes in the studio, opting instead for a plain metal (white enameled) butcher tray. More room to work, easy to hold, and CHEAP :P

        I’m still tweaking the best places to squirt all my main colors out in relation to each other, but aside from putting my idanthrone blue in the wrong spot and finding it hard to switch from warm to cool yellow when needed, I really like how it’s working out.

        I’m just using the lines of paint to define my working ‘wells’. It’s starting to get a little cramped, but it’s nice not having a bunch of mud just flowing willy-nilly around the tray after every painting.

        Too late after squirting most of these colors out, it dawned on me that it would be useful to create small ‘pure color’ wells in the middle of each line, so I’m slowly morphing the little dents into the blobs, the best examples are in the cobalt turquoise and the burnt umber. I can just spray or dump a little water into the middle of each color-blob-well and have a nice juicy dip of pure color when I need it. If you look at the pyrrole red in the corner, you can see what I’m doing with the outer colors for this. Just scraping or peeling them back from the side a little.

        Most of the mixing puddles stay confined within the boundaries of the colors that created them, so I’m able to at least make a stab at using the leftovers. :) The way that I have my other tray set up, every painting generates a 1/4 cup of what is about the most neutral gray mud you’re ever going to have, just sloshing all over the place.

        When I finally get set up in Anchorage, I’m going to get one of the bigger butcher trays and make it my main, perfect-for-me studio palette, and use this smaller one for plein aire, setting it up as just a smaller version so I’m not flailing around with too many different tool sets.

        I think I have a solution to solve the problem of the yellow. In the picture, you can see my dilemma, after mixing a green shade of yellow and using it, if I need an orange shade, I have to do some cleaning. I’ve been trying to get away with using a neutral yellow for both sides. Rather than have the Indian yellow touching the outside edge of the tray, I’ll back it off a little and do a full line of my benzi all the way to the red, giving me options for warm and cold without having to scrub it clean on every switch. Actually, I think I’ll speed up that process and just peel and re-stick the Indian Yellow.

        The dark colors on the other side are my own mix of Payne’s grey (on the blue side, PBk6, PB29, PB60) and paliogen black (on the green side). I need to peel the idanthrone blue off of the outside edge where it is currently between the phthalo blue and ultramarine. It needs to be between the phthalo blue and the Payne’s gray. I mix my Payne’s heavy on the black, but can adjust it out with whatever blue it needs a little more of.

        I’ve been getting some cross-slosh contamination between the paliogen and Payne’s while I’m working, and I’m considering running a separation line of pure lamp black between them to keep from always ending up with ‘Shadow Teal’. If I had any more neutral tint, I’d probably use that instead.

        Here’s the current iteration of my ‘main’ butcher palette, it has definitely been much more of a learning experience that I was thinking it was going to be!

        Karl

        "Someone asked me, if I were stranded on a desert island what book would I bring... "How to Build a Boat." ~Steven Wright

        #1188770
        Tred
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            The traditional way to do it is to squeeze a small amount of the colors you intend to use on any particular painting along the edge of the tray leaving the centre bare for mixing. There is a chapter in Nita Engle’s book which comes to mind but there are plenty of other inmates of WC who, I’m sure, will put you right. Basically you use it like a John Pike without well walls and with less colours!
            Cheers
            Tred

            "When I see a jumble; I paint just that" - John Yardley

            #1188778
            Undergoose
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                Understood, that’s the way I’ve got my initial one set up, although I followed Ron Ranson and Stevin Cronin’s set up, using seven colors and working kind of big and sloppy. It has produced some great paintings for me, for sure.

                I’m intentionally putting this one outside of ‘right’ (I’m a rule breaker, remember ;)) because I only want to squeeze tubes once every couple of weeks (and only in the studio, not on-site), I want a practical way to use one palette for multiple sets of colors for different styles and feels, and dog-gone-it, it’s just fun to experiment. :)

                Since there are enough people out there using and documenting the established way, this post was more of an explanation of what I’m trying differently to accommodate my goals.

                So far it’s going well, and I’m VERY happy with the versatility and what I’ve been able to produce with it, although it is a little confined to be banging around in there with a big hake or mottler. I think moving from the 7 1/2″ x 11″ to the 11″ x 15″ will help with that some. That largest tray seems like it would be like trying to paint out of an upside down car hood, so I’m staying away from that for now.

                I’m also re-assessing the colors that I have in there based on Virgil’s brain-bonking chroma and gamut essay that I’m still assimilating.

                Karl

                "Someone asked me, if I were stranded on a desert island what book would I bring... "How to Build a Boat." ~Steven Wright

                #1188762
                Marcio C
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                    I’ve never seen anyone use a butcher tray quite the way you are doing.
                    A true butcher tray is raised in the middle, causing liquid to flow to the edges (useful in the case of blood), so the usual way is to squeeze a dollop of paint close but not right at the edge, that way any contaminated color runs to the edge, leaving pure color where you put it.

                    #1188765
                    Mayberry
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                        That’s quite an interesting idea for a palette. I know some people use caulk to make wash barriers in their butcher trays, but paint works!

                        I’m still hooked on condiment dishes, of varying sizes, with or without internal dividers. If I need a particularly big wash of something, it gets its own dish.

                        #1188779
                        Undergoose
                        Default

                            I’ve never seen anyone use a butcher tray quite the way you are doing.

                            I tend to hear a lot of that kind of sentiment…you should see my fishing tackle box. :lol:

                            A true butcher tray is raised in the middle, causing liquid to flow to the edges (useful in the case of blood), so the usual way is to squeeze a dollop of paint close but not right at the edge, that way any contaminated color runs to the edge, leaving pure color where you put it.

                            Yup, this is the real deal, convex middle butcher tray from Amazon, I’m just trying to eliminate as much of the contaminated color generation as I can. Paint is spendy!

                            The tray is actually a “Pro Arte” or whatever the brand was. It’s the one that has that fantastic Jedi-level disclaimer on it, “Natural chipping may occur around the rim. This is not a defect.”. I love that…can you imagine what our world would be like if every company jumped on that buggy?

                            “Natural deflation of your new tires may occur. This is not a defect.”

                            “Your new toaster may naturally heat up and destroy your home. This is not a defect.”

                            “These are not the droids you are looking for.” *waves hand* :rolleyes:

                            …I know some people use caulk to make wash barriers in their butcher trays, but paint works!…

                            My initial thought was to squeeze and dry lines of heavy-bodied acrylic for dividers. Then I smacked my forehead and went, “knucklehead!”. :p

                            Karl

                            "Someone asked me, if I were stranded on a desert island what book would I bring... "How to Build a Boat." ~Steven Wright

                            #1188757
                            Dragoon
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                                That’s just….:eek: .

                                Also, :confused: …

                                But I’m glad you’re having fun, honey!:cat:
                                *said with the same expression as one who watches the kid put the crayon up their nose instead of on the paper*
                                D.

                                Sorry Karl, no offense meant! Couldn’t resist teasing you a little, c’mon!

                                #1188780
                                Undergoose
                                Default

                                    That’s just….:eek: .

                                    Also, :confused: …

                                    But I’m glad you’re having fun, honey!:cat:
                                    *said with the same expression as one who watches the kid put the crayon up their nose instead of on the paper*
                                    D.

                                    [SIZE=1]Sorry Karl, no offense meant! Couldn’t resist teasing you a little, c’mon![/SIZE]

                                    LOL! Big meanie!

                                    Keep your eyes on the ‘Gallery for the results of my blatant disregard for the conventional ;). It’s working so far.

                                    Now, if you’ll excuse me, I need to go clean the periwinkle blue wax out of my sinuses.

                                    :lol:

                                    Karl

                                    "Someone asked me, if I were stranded on a desert island what book would I bring... "How to Build a Boat." ~Steven Wright

                                    #1188746
                                    hblenkle
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                                        Hey, it is worth a try. The worst that can happen is that it doesn’t work so well and you use up the paint and use the butcher’s tray like everyone else. If it is working for you that is all that counts. You see all the different palettes available now. Someone had to get an original idea and try a new way of doing it to come up with these various palettes.

                                        #1188760
                                        M.L. Schaefer
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                                            Aaargh! This from the “clean palette kid!” I may have nightmares of your Butcher Tray:evil: !

                                            Butcher Tray = fresh squeezed paint = large mixing area. Oh, my, where/how do you mix?

                                            And now I must rest my mind from this horrific vision so I’ll be able to sleep tonight! :lol: :lol:

                                            The Clean Palette Kid signing off.

                                            :heart: Margarete

                                            P.S. But I see what you are doing, taking a sweep of a yellow, taking a sweep of the red, and getting your mixing color. Then, cleaning out the central area…but you may be wasting a bit of paint every time you clean up any contaminated paint?

                                            When he, the Spirit of truth is come...he will be your Guide... Holy Bible (Old and New Testament)
                                            Under the Concrete are Flowers Yet to be Born...from a Chilean Poem

                                            #1188745

                                            Karl, you are a breath of fresh air :lol:

                                            Hope it works for you, but I don’t understand how you intend to use it, how to mix colours for example?

                                            Doug


                                            We must leave our mark on this world

                                            #1188781
                                            Undergoose
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                                                I don’t intend to ever clean the palette, even the areas between the colors, unless I tip it and all the liquid from the individual ‘wells’ runs all over the place; that’s one of the goals of the layout. Have a look at Steven’s videos on youtube – he never cleans his palette and his layout has all the neutral muck running around in it. He shows it at the beginning of all of his 400+ videos, and it looks like a disaster area, but it works for what he’s doing. Watching and learning from him has drastically speeded up my own production.

                                                As Virgil says, it’s a quick and dirty way to achieve a tie-in between your colors throughout the painting without having to think much about it. Steven’s is a bit extreme, but I really like the moody feeling he gets by using the dirty colors. I don’t aim to paint a lot of high chroma stuff, so I’m not terribly worried about using virgin colors at the start of every painting, but I am trying to come back a bit from where he lives so I have the option.

                                                Only having enough liquid sloshing between two adjacent mixing colors to mix what I need will get used up pretty easily. Whatever is left can dry and be lifted as needed (I find myself using the same mixes more often than not). Keeping those mixed puddles from running into each other keeps them both usable at the same time and minimizes mud waste.

                                                There’s a couple of exceptions that I haven’t quite worked out yet, like where I mix my ultramarine and burnt sienna/umber/raw sienna.

                                                Right now it’s definitely crowded when using my 2″ wash brush, which is what I’m doing 80% of the painting with on 11×15. The bigger tray will help with that, and I’ll likely be using less colors, as well. I’ve boxed up all my hakes and I’m only using the Neptune mottlers now, which lend themselves well to a little more control with the motor skills. Using the hakes always felt a little too “Gongo paints pretty picture”. That, and there’s the shedding.

                                                It’s kind of silly to have perylene maroon and quin violet (quin aliz crim flavored) right next to each other on the same palette when they’re mostly interchangeable for what I use them for. It’s just that I haven’t decided on a favorite yet. I like the dark feel of the maroon, but it’s also a bit dead in mixes. It does really nice glazes, though, leaning towards yellow rather than purple.

                                                Likewise, the idanthrone blue is very nice, but easy enough to mix an equivalent.

                                                I really don’t use the chromium oxide green very much, either. I much prefer phthalo green and yellow ochre when I need an opaque green.

                                                So far it’s working well for me, even with the beta-version issues, and I’ll get the kinks worked out. I’m also setting up to start making videos, so if you’re interested in visiting the zoo, you’ll be able to see my debacle-tray in action.

                                                Don’t worry, in six months it’ll be streamlined and I’ll probably have a whole list of associated rules that I’ve forced down my own throat for it. :p

                                                Karl

                                                "Someone asked me, if I were stranded on a desert island what book would I bring... "How to Build a Boat." ~Steven Wright

                                                #1188756
                                                pjartwc
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                                                    I’ve been taught to use a butcher tray. I like mine as flat as it can be. I have a 10-color palette and have them arranged with cool on one side and warm on the other. The tray allows the paint to stay clean as I wash the colors with warm water before starting a new painting. I found that the wells are very hard to keep clean. And, I usually put a small amount of fresh paint out on top of the existing pile at the beginning of a session. Both old and new paint are used.

                                                    C&C WELCOMED

                                                    Jan

                                                    #1188763

                                                    I started out with various plastic palettes, small wells, small mixing areas then switched to a ‘real’ enameled metal butcher tray with a raised center. Used it for a long while, and eventually found some plastic, flat bottomed, food presentation trays. I use two: 12×16 inch. One is mainly for yellow down through the gamut to violet including earth tones. The other is mainly for blue, gray, green. I say mainly as I sometimes need to bring colours from one tray to the other. I never usually clean them, just spritz and wait a minute. When there isn’t any place for pure yellow, I soak them for 1/2 hour and rub off most of the paint and yes they are badly stained, but they suit my style. No problem with a 2 inch brush.

                                                    It is only on a basis of knowledge that we can become free to compose naturally. -- Bernard Dunstan
                                                    blog.jlk.net

                                                    #1188782
                                                    Undergoose
                                                    Default

                                                        I started out with various plastic palettes, small wells, small mixing areas then switched to a ‘real’ enameled metal butcher tray with a raised center. Used it for a long while, and eventually found some plastic, flat bottomed, food presentation trays. I use two: 12×16 inch. One is mainly for yellow down through the gamut to violet including earth tones. The other is mainly for blue, gray, green. I say mainly as I sometimes need to bring colours from one tray to the other. I never usually clean them, just spritz and wait a minute. When there isn’t any place for pure yellow, I soak them for 1/2 hour and rub off most of the paint and yes they are badly stained, but they suit my style. No problem with a 2 inch brush.

                                                        I looked around for anything I could find at several stores to just act as a decent shallow box that holds paint, but it was amazing how little I could find. Cake pans were either too deep or made of Pyrex glass, cookie sheets were too shallow and would need a coating of white enamel, etc.

                                                        It sounds like your style is something that I’m aiming towards, Claude. Where did you find your trays? We do have a restaurant supply store really close here, maybe I can find something there.

                                                        The fact that I used an actual butcher tray (well, the fake artist-targeted version of one) and referred to it as such is, I think, why the villagers came running up the hill with their torches and pitchforks, shouting things about my lack of formal ‘butcher tray training’. :p

                                                        I wasn’t aware there was an actual (and apparently highly revered :lol: ) discipline regarding the use of the butcher tray, I just mistakenly thought it was an open container to hold my paints. I realized that there were a few artists out there who have books and videos regarding how THEY use butcher trays, but didn’t realize that they required such rigidity.

                                                        The only reason I posted this thread was to show how I’M using a rectangle of metal to hold the paints I like to use, just in case it might help someone who is working on their own rectangles. I wasn’t quite expecting to be cast off for my efforts. It’s a damned good thing I didn’t post something about how I use my brushes, I bet I don’t do that ‘right’ either. I am most definitely “not from around these parts”. :rolleyes:

                                                        Karl

                                                        "Someone asked me, if I were stranded on a desert island what book would I bring... "How to Build a Boat." ~Steven Wright

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