I’ve been using a new palette with a slightly different pigment selection recently. This is not aimed to replace my current palette, but a way for me to
- explore new or seldomly used pigments, and
- test a new magnetic palette (the Compuzzle modular palette)
Let’s start with the palette: the Mungyo Compuzzle modular palette was a random find at my local art supply dealer (they’ve since discontinued it, lol, and I think you’ll see why they did). The brand Mungyo seems to be Korean. I got the palette itself and two packs of additional metal pans, which was good foresight because now I can’t get any replacements.
The Compuzzle palette seems similar to the Art Toolkit Pocket palette, which is available in Europe for outrageous prices, so despite a lot of sketchers saying good things about it, I haven’t tested that one yet. But I recently got one in a clearance sale, so I can actually give you a comparison of these two very similar looking palettes soon.
The concept of the two palettes is the same: you get a compact palette with a metal base that’s magnetic, and you have small metal pans that can be arranged inside to your liking. The pans just click into place.
My Compuzzle palette is about 9×6 cm and 1.2cm in height, like an old-fashioned cigarette box. It came with two pan sizes, similar to half pans and full pans, but much flatter, so they hold less paint, which doesn’t have to be bad if you don’t need much paint. I used it for testing so didn’t mind the small amount of paint. In some of the photos you can see a regular half pan I added for comparison.
It’s fun to put together the small pans and slide them around. I ended up moving one pigment from a small to a large pan (my sap green), relocating the paint and cleaning the metal pan went well.
There were however some aspects that I found less appealing.
The Compuzzle palette is very small and flat. What I found strange though is the weight of this little palette. They advertise the palette for „artists on the go“, but I found the slightly filled palette (140g) to almost as heavy as my fully topped up field kit (180g). It feels massive and somehow valuable, but that doesn’t make me want to bring it outside at all, and for 40 more grams I have more pans and a considerably bigger mixing area. I guess the Art Toolkit palettes are lighter (62g with paint) and more configurable.
The Compuzzle palette has one big mixing area with 4 magnetic mixing wells, I left them all in because having separate mixing areas is always a plus. They’ve put some kind of white coating into the mixing areas, which is nice. Cleaning the areas went well.
The pans themselves were also easy to fill and clean, but…they rusted?! I didn’t touch the pans with anything scratchy, just with paint, water and brush bristles (the softest the world has ever known, wait no, just my usual synthetic rounds). After a few weeks of use I could see small rust flakes forming in almost every pan, next to the paint. This shouldn’t be happening and it’s really disappointing. Granted, it doesn’t say stainless or no rust anywhere on the packaging, but I sort of expected this to be the case? Who designs this stuff, and who takes it for a test drive? I know there are a number of respectable paint/art supplies that come from Korea, like Mijello paint, so I didn’t expect the palette to rust away like the bottom of an old car.
One minor thing I found distracting was the shiny metal outside of the palette, it essentially works like a mirror, plus it shows fingerprints. I didn’t care for that and put rainbow stripes of washi tape on top. I planned to do the same on the bottom before I saw the rust blooms unfold and immediately lost the motivation to do anything else with the palette.
The bottom is scratched after light use, but to be honest so are all of my metal palettes and I don’t mind signs of use. Also: yes my other metal palettes show mild signs of rust too where the enamel is gone, but that 1. doesn’t come into contact with the paint and 2. it’s only in very small chipped off areas.
Since I knew that I wouldn’t need an allrounder palette for field use (already have that), I put paints and pigments into the little pans that I’ve been wanting to explore and experiment with. More on these pigments will follow in the next post!
All in all, this is a cute and practical little palette that unfortunately has several major design flaws, most of all the rust issue which now has immediately turned it into a fancy looking, weighty trash can object that I spent 20€ on. The art supply store maybe noticed this too and took the palette out of their catalogue, so I’m happy to say that I don’t even know where you can get this thing right now.
If it weren’t for that (and the weight), I would probably take it for a field sketching trip or fill it with paints I want to experiment on. But for that I will soon have the Art Toolkit palette, which will hopefully perform better. Stay tuned!
Grab some Art Toolkit empty pans and use them in the Compuzzle. Maybe that would be a solution before tossing it? I used my Art Toolkit on vacation this summer and loved it despite the fact that I didn’t think I would like it.
Yeah I had the same thought but they don’t fit. But it’s okay, I’ll find something for the Compuzzle palette. Great that you like your Art Toolkit!
I’ve just finished daily sketching with a cheap( Temu) metal palette with 14 plastic squares that fit snugly in the 5 x 11cm box 2 flaps that fold out for mixing with indents.17 days through the outback in Oz,one water brush and pencils.. perfect for small urban or landscape pictures!
Sounds amazing Carol, great to hear you had such a practical palette with you!
Sorry this was such a frustrating product for you! Unfortunately the Compuzzle is yet another cheaply made knockoff of the original Art Toolkit. I own several AT palettes and covers and they are in heavy rotation in a humid environment. They’re very lightweight (brushed aluminum case with stainless steel pans) and fully customizable. They’re also less than half the thickness of the Compuzzle. The AT site a also sells space-saving collapsible silicone cups for water, or you can use water brushes. Hope you enjoy using the AT palette a bit more–it really is a fantastic portable palette!
Thanks Tara, that’s okay, it’s all in the service of art! I’m curious how the AT palette will handle, I got two. I’m loving the weight so far, but the small pans are tiny, lol. I didn’t have much choice with the pans because I got the palettes from a clearance sale. I have a few small water containers with screw tops and magnets that work great. :-)
I wonder if you could spray the pans with rustoleum paint?
Good idea, I wonder if this would be stable enough if I then put paint into them. Though I’m rubbish with spray paint. I’ll investigate. :-)
Julia, I find the personal need to always mix my pigments against a white background. My big palette is plastic and white, it cleans up pretty well, but, I also have a few smooth white pottery saucers. I use them frequently; the ceramic surface is very smooth. I buy them at the local secondhand store. Reflective metal surface for mixing is too reflective for my taste. Thanks for your views.
Rolf
I like to mix on white too, and I like ceramic plates as well! But I don’t use it outdoors. The mixing wells in this palette are actually coated with a matte white film, so they work well for mixing.
I’ve seen the Art Toolkit Palette « advertised » everywhere on youtube and blogs for a few years now. Even with a coupon code I got recently, it’s still an « outrageous price » as you said. I often wonder how anyone outside the US can afford this.
Yes they’re incredibly pricey. I got it from a local shop that’s closing so they had a lower price, plus I can write it off as a business expense. But as a hobbyist I would think very long before buying this palette. It’s nice, yes, but there are many great inexpensive palettes out there.
Jerry’s Artarama in the US now sells this palette but the pans are different from those pictured. Maybe they’re better? I have had mine for a bit now, and haven’t seen any rust. It is heavier than the Art Toolkit ,but it does have more mixing space which was an issue for me with the Art Toolkit.
Ah very interesting. Maybe they changed something about the pans. I always appreciate more mixing space too!
If you look on mungyo’s website they say that the compuzzle palette is made with solid stainless steel. I understand this may not have always been the case but the new ones should not rust if their claim is true.