Pochade Boxes

Today on his art blog Lines and Colors, Charley Parker gives a thorough description of all the pochade boxes on the market. Pochade boxes are popular portable easels for plein air painters. Thanks for the link and the mention, Charley!

As he says, I do recommend an Open Box M, but in fairness to the other brands, I just haven’t tried them. I have the 8x10 and the 10x12 sizes. I made a few modifications to the Open Box M 10 x 12 inch box. Mine came with a side panel, which I drilled with holes of various sizes to hold brushes that are not in use, as well as slots for the palette knife and mahl stick. A lot of artists use a special metal holder for the brushes. I also drilled big holes for Nalgene cups (for Grumtine and Liquin.)

I either clip a rag to the side or hang a paper towel roll underneath. Instead of mixing the paint on the wood palette surface, I cut up freezer paper to 9x12 inches and paper clip it to a mat board, and drop the mixing pad into the recessed area. That way I don’t have to scrape off old paint.
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Here’s a post where I explain my set-up a little more, link.
Charley Parker’s post on Lines and Colors, link.
Also, check out the site Outdoor Painting for more on plein air equipment, link