Trying Gouache

I’ve always admired the look of a gouache sketch. The deep opaque colors with a matte finish seem to pop off the page. So I bought a Holbein gouache set that contained the basic primaries plus white and black. In watercolor, I’ve only used white for minimal highlights and I’ve never used black - that will take some adjustment. As I try to use a limited palette whenever I paint, the three primaries suits me.

My first impression is that I do need to get a couple of flat brushes exclusively for gouache and a plate or butcher tray for mixing. Same paper as watercolor which is great. I also played around with adding watercolor straight out of the tube for more subtle hues and watercolor and gouache are friends! - they work great together because gouache is essentially watercolor but modified to make it opaque using larger particles.

It dries super fast and the need to mix enough wash is apparent pretty quickly. But it is more controllable on the paper then watercolor and misses the unplanned affects of watercolor. I plan on continuing to experience and learn with it and try it out of the studio too. Stay tuned for more with gouache!

Catalina Pueblo in the Tucson Foothills

From a photo taken by my daughter in Clyde, Ohio

Holbein Gouache tubes: Pure Red, Primary Yellow, Pure Blue, Titanium White and Ivory Black