One of my favourite parts of developing a new linocut-painting is choosing colours. I have a large box of watercolour pigments. Even the names are beautiful: Venetian Red, Quinacridone Gold, Goethite, Ultramarine Blue. Each one has unique properties. Some are clear and let the white of the paper glow through. Others are semi-opaque and obscure the black ink if I’m careless in my painting. Some are granulating pigments, their grains settling out into freckled patterns determined by the tiny valleys in the surface of the paper.
From the box, I select a few that I think will suit the mood of the image, and make colour swatches and start to write down mixes that work. It’s like creating a recipe.
Like any recipe, it is only a helpful guide, and is modified as I learn through each new painting. Next time, add more salt.
The process is satisfying and meditative, and a very enjoyable thing to do on days when a soft gentle rain falls outside.