[kennywinker]

To push back a little on this “it’s not that deep” line of thinking - maybe not in this case but certainly in the past when colours were rare and expensive - “i ran out of green” is something an artist with a patron or a wealthy background would be much less likely to say - while another artist with less sound financials might be constantly running short of green.

The colours used by an artist can hint at their financial position, it is certainly influenced by the science of pigments at the time, and even global trade patterns, extreme weather events in the past, war, etc.

I ran out of green can mean different things depending on circumstances. Some of those things are pretty interesting. Sometimes even a not that deep reason is actually pretty deep. :)

[ivanhoe]

The realistic style of old times also forced the authors to use subtle and hidden symbolism to express themselves so that the main story of the image (which was usually pre-ordered) was not affected. Paintings were meant to be a decoration or a source of religious inspiration, and certainly not an artist's personal expression - and they'd be out of business very quickly if they didn't follow the rules. Now we view the art very differently.