This month I spent time on a personal retreat at Walcott Hall in the beautiful idyllic countryside of Shropshire, England. I was painting an icon of the Mother of God with the Child Jesus. I wanted to focus on the folds and shapes in the drapery and obtaining the correct reading of the forms. I used a new recipe for egg tempera (modifying some of the proportions to egg yolk, vodka and water compared to what I have used before). I stuck to using the four pigments of the ancient palette called the tetrachromata (black, white, yellow and red ochres, plus blue). Using fewer pigments creates harmony and allows you to focus on the message the icon has to portray.