While we all comprehend watercolor, many Western artists use gouache, and especially commercial illustrators often choose this particular material. It became interesting to me why it is so good and I ordered a small set of 18 colors from the Japanese manufacturer Turner from Jacksons. There is very little information on the net about gouache, so it was an experiment.

If you want to place an order for Jacksons, I wrote a detailed how to do it. By registering using the links from there you will receive a 10% discount on your first order.

I want to note right away that my gouache has an ordinary green box without streaks, I looked at ebay and there are two options - a green box and a box with brush strokes, also green made of thin cardboard. I tried to find out how they differ and I have a suspicion that the second option is cheaper and from an amateur school series, although the colors are still the same.

There is also a Japanesque series on Ebay with more natural colors and an original palette. This is a special edition and it differs from mine in shades of colors, but it is the same gouache from the same manufacturer.

The main feature of this gouache is that it is a hybrid material, a cross between acrylic and gouache, combining the dullness of gouache and the quick drying of acrylic.

The first impression is excellent, although the box is cardboard, it is very comfortable, dense and weighty, made of pleasant materials. Inside are large plastic tubes of 20 ml, and here I also have no complaints; on the contrary, I wish all manufacturers to take note. The tube conveniently indicates the name of the color, the incoming pigments and an approximate swatch (well, of course, on plastic it will not correspond to the real color). A very convenient lid, this is just a sore point of many tubes. Western comrades say that the plastic is fu, air gets into the tube and the gouache dries, but I can’t say anything about this yet, because it takes time and comparison with a metal tube. By the way, I found a picture with tubes on the Internet different sizes from the largest to the smallest, but I myself have not come across such a variety.

The colors are amazing and the illustrations are perfect. The paints are declared rather as decorative, they can be painted on almost any surface, having previously degreased it - glass, metal, plastic, canvas, paper, and so on. Once dry, the gouache is water resistant and allows you to apply multiple layers without smearing the bottom layer, which is what makes it so cool, unlike regular gouache.

This gouache differs from acrylic with a matte surface and a more even opaque finish. Here is a great photo showing the difference between acrylic gouache, regular gouache and acrylic, as you can see, acrylic still shines through more when glazed.

And just like acrylic, this gouache dries very quickly, literally within a few minutes, which is convenient in drawing and not very convenient when squeezing paint onto a palette. A wet palette saves the situation a little as for acrylic.

My painting is white last square respectively white. It's a pity that Opera Red looks so dim, it's actually a fluorescent crazy pink. You can also clearly see what happens when you try to blur the colors - a layer that dries too quickly appears as a sloppy edge under a transparent fill.

My first experiment, I specifically load a large image so that you can see all the jambs that may arise, for example, how translucent layers look compared to ordinary ones. In the picture, there are about 3-4 layers on top of each other.

So, as usual, the pros:

• Delightful texture, matte, not erased and not crumbling after drying, suitable for further refinement with anything, including pencils. Gouache itself is combined with watercolors and acrylics, possibly tempera, although there is a recommendation on the packaging not to mix paints inconsistently with other types of paints and with oils.
• An excellent bright palette, the presence of a fluorescent, mother-of-pearl, pastel line, as many as 221 colors.
• The colors mix well with each other.
• Fast drying and even coverage.
• Suitable for different surfaces.
• Quite economical, and tubes big size.
• Suitable for any, more or less dense paper.
• Doesn't damage brushes, washable warm water with soap, although I could not wash it off the plastic palette, no matter how hard I tried.

Minuses:

• This is studio material - the box is not meant to be carried around, the way it works takes time, palette and space.
• Fast drying paint on the palette.
• When squeezing out, a small, menthol-like smell is felt, I don’t think it’s very critical, but you need to report it, after the paint dries, the smell disappears completely.
• Best of all, this gouache looks in a pasty opaque technique, when an excess amount of water is added, ugly stains appear and the instantly dried previous layer is visible.
• Some of the colors are multi-pigmented, for example blue is all composite.
• There is no indication of lightfastness and full dyeing of all colors - only for a fee in Jacksons.
• In Russian stores it is very expensive (4-5 thousand rubles) and is generally not represented everywhere.
• The palette is too vigorous for naturalistic works - the way out is to buy tubes separately for yourself, or constantly mix everything with everything.

So far, I really like the material, compared to ordinary gouache, this one is more comfortable, bright and original. I will definitely use it, maybe even buy individual shades.

In the section on the question What is the difference between watercolor and gouache? given by the author stand apart the best answer is depending on what, watercolor gives soft pastel tones. Gouache usually gives sharp poster shades.
depending on what you need paint for!
if we say a poster to draw, then gouache, acrylic, gel with sparkles ....
if something is painted over (depending on what) ..maybe a flomik will come up ... (there are those .. who draw on everything)
if you just draw something ... then you can use watercolor pencils instead of watercolors .. or draw with pastels ... or something else ....

Answer from electric welding[newbie]
Watercolor has more pastel, delicate or soft tones. Gouache is harder, richer, and the colors are mostly dark.
Gouache is cracking.
Thanks to watercolor, you can achieve any saturation of the shade. As far as I know, you won't do it in gouache.
Well, already according to a personal feeling, What is more convenient to draw))

Answer from User deleted[active]
The gouache is thick, and the watercolor blurs. Better gouache

Answer from European[guru]
It all depends on what you need to draw. If a poster, you can’t do without gouache, if a drawing, it’s better to use watercolor.

Answer from Stas Babush[master]
In fact, gouache is considered not very useful.
And the difference when drawing is that gouache lays down in a rather dense layer, that is upper layer sets the color of the picture. When painting with watercolor, the drawing is more airy, but each superimposed layer sets its own hue.
I advise you to try it anyway and decide for yourself.
Personally, I prefer watercolor.

Answer from Jana[newbie]
What's the best? Depends on a person. Watercolor produces lighter, transparent and blurry pictures, while gouache produces richer and darker ones.

11.10.2017 19:17 3422

Many of you love to paint. Some people like watercolors, others like gouache. What is the difference between gouache and watercolor? Let's find out.

Watercolor has a watery base. Therefore, the word "aqua" appears in the name of this paint, which means water. When dried, watercolor retains its color. It gives the drawings softer and more transparent tones. If such paint is applied to slightly wet sheet paper, it will spread and mix in colors. You can get an unusual and spectacular pattern.

Gouache has a denser texture. Unlike watercolor, it does not spread and the drawings are clear. When it dries, it becomes matte and its shade brightens, since gouache contains white. Thanks to this feature on gouache, you can correct the mistake by applying a lighter color to a dark color. FROM watercolor paints it won't work that way.
From this comparison, we can conclude that gouache is better suited for creating large posters or posters, and watercolor for creative work.

It should be remembered that if gouache is applied in a very thick layer, then a crack may appear on it when it dries.

Another interesting difference is that there is no white in watercolor, but there is in gouache. Therefore, to give the picture White color in watercolor, the artists simply leave an unpainted spot on the white paper.

Arts and Entertainment

How is gouache different from watercolor? Interesting Facts

April 23, 2018

Surely everyone, as a child, drew in kindergarten and at labor lessons with brushes on a white sheet, because the words "gouache" and "watercolor" are familiar to absolutely everyone, regardless of the profession acquired in the future.

But before you find out how gouache differs from watercolor, it is worth understanding both concepts.

Who are they?

Gouache comes from the Italian word guazzo and means "water paint". It is one of the types of artificial paints, the ability of which lies in the ability to dissolve in water.

Watercolor means "watery" in French. It refers to adhesive (binding components - dextrin with gum arabic) paints, the solvent of which is water.

Differences

Perhaps the main difference is:

• gouache has a denser, matte and overall opaque layer;
• watercolor is valued for its transparency, purity, softness and fineness of the layer.

In application:

• watercolor is used only on paper;
• for gouache, the basis is not only paper, but also harder surfaces, such as fabric, cardboard or salt dough crafts.

Properties:

• watercolor is very practical and convenient in the workflow, because due to its peculiarity, you can safely correct and correct defects even with the help of a wet fleece;
• gouache is much more difficult to remove because of the denser texture.

Structure:

• When dried, the gouache does not become glossy, but on the contrary, with a matte tint and lighter than with the initial stroke. This process occurs due to the white included in the composition. And this is its huge plus: due to an error dark color can be corrected by applying the paint a few tones lighter.
• With watercolor, this process is not possible. She either mixes both colors in herself, or overlaps one with the other.

• in gouache with the help of white, you can create many shades;
• in watercolor, white is absent, it is replaced by the paper itself, leaving a gap on it.

Worth knowing:

• if you are just getting started with fine arts, then you should start with watercolor, as it is easier to manage and much easier to remove errors.

Related videos

Acrylic

Acrylic paint contains acrylic and resins. They lay down fairly evenly and dry quickly.

How is gouache different from acrylic paints?

• Acrylic does not fade and retains its original color perfectly.
• Acrylic does not crumble after a while, either from paper or from other bases.
• After drying, the paint darkens.
• Acrylic is suitable for painting in a watercolor style.

Outcome

The choice for both beginners and professionals is very large.

Now you know how gouache differs from watercolors with acrylics, and with the help of which paints you can bring your inspiration into artistic light, it's up to you to decide.

Most of us are accustomed to gouache somewhat dismissively. It is believed that this material is suitable only for design work and children's creativity, but it is impossible to consider it as a serious material for painting.

Knights gouache

However, in the Middle Ages, in Europe, this material was widely used in writing miniatures, and not only for preparatory sketch work. In Russia, at the end of the 19th and the beginning of the 20th century, serious works were written in gouache easel painting. It was during this period that gouache flourished.

Artists who have mastered this "frivolous" material to perfection create wonderful, elegant, uniquely velvety works. Especially wonderful, with the help of gouache, it is possible to convey the unique atmosphere of evening twilight and foggy pre-dawn landscapes.
Basically, gouache is an opaque watercolor. To work with gouache, there is no need for special thinners and drying accelerators, as when working with oil. When painting with gouache, there is no need to think about various aids (such as drying retarders, modeling pastes, varnishes, etc.). Gouache is versatile artistic material which allows, having paints, water and paper, to master artistic techniques characteristic of other materials. You can paint with heavily diluted gouache in watercolor, or you can master the painting techniques inherent in noble oil. Drawing with gouache is comfortable, it does not have an unpleasant odor, does not require working with solvents, makes it easy to make changes to the drawing and does not require any special surface for drawing (canvases, primers, etc.). That is why it is very popular in children's art and is widely used by novice artists. The landscape was painted in gouache by each of us. Gouache for beginners is suitable for pros.

gouache squirrel

There are several types of gouache: artistic, poster, acrylic and for children's creativity.

Types of gouache.

. Artistic gouache- these are ground pigments, with the addition of distilled water, white and gum arabic. This gouache has excellent opacity, matte, velvety and perfectly lays down on the artistic surface. For this type of paint, uncoated cardboard is ideal as a working surface, watercolor paper, tinted paper. The first coat of paint soaks into the art surface, creating something like a primer. This allows the paint to adhere better to the work surface.
. Poster gouache is an ordinary gouache, with the only exception that kaolin is used instead of white. This makes the paint more vibrant and dense.
. Gouache for children's creativity contains cheap PVA glue instead of expensive gum arabic. This makes the paint less plastic and it dries faster. However, this makes it more resistant to shedding and abrasion. Such paint is suitable not only for paper, but also for plywood, ceramics and canvas, which can not be primed with a special primer (as is the case with art gouache). PVA in the composition of gouache becomes an excellent fixer and successfully replaces a special primer. Children's gouache drawings delight the eyes and hearts of parents.
. Some manufacturers, with the advent of artistic acrylic, began to produce acrylic gouache. Such gouache is suitable for painting any surface, and after complete drying it is not washed off with water.

Gouache Fairy Dragon Castle

Gouache properties and color features.

Many consider gouache not convenient for drawing. If you have previously painted mainly in watercolor, then you need to remember just a few rules in order to get the same wonderful result when working with gouache.

Gouache paint is not transparent and contains white. This means that you need to write from dark to light, and not vice versa. That is, having decided on the composition and colors, you need to start with darker paint tones, and highlights and dark color accents are placed at the end of the work.

In order not to get confused about the possibility of mixing colors and shades, and also not to mess up with the color for the shadows, it is better to have an idea about color wheel used by artists. Colors lying in neighboring sectors of the circle mix with each other without the formation of dirt, and for shadows it is better to take a color from the opposite sector. This color is added in the required amount to the main tone. More often, for the image of the shadow, they take: blue, green or purple. Under no circumstances should black be added to the shadow image. Also, you cannot use black to get a darker tone of the same color, you will not darken the tone, but you will get dirt.

Among other things, you should know that gouache dries quickly enough. If you make a mistake, then you can not correct it until the gouache has dried out. In case of violation of this rule, you will get a smeared dirty spot. You need to make changes and corrections to the drawing after waiting for the gouache layer to dry completely. Usually the drying time depends on the thickness of the gouache layer, it varies from 30 minutes to 3 hours. When the gouache has dried, it is very easy to make changes. You just need to moisten the brush in warm and pigment-free water, lightly wring it out with a dry cloth and wipe off the paint in the place of the mistake with a light movement. In the same way, you can shade an overly clear outline of a drawn object.

When mixing colors, you need to take into account that wet gouache is brighter. When it dries, it becomes white due to the presence of chalk in it. Therefore, colors should always be chosen more saturated than those that you want to see in the final work.

gouache horse

Gouache brushes and stroke techniques.

Right choice brushes will also help to facilitate acquaintance with this artistic material. Since gouache is heavier and more viscous, too soft brushes are not suitable for it, so it is better to put aside a light squirrel. For wet gouache, well suited: columns, goat and synthetics. These brushes are great for shading, backgrounds and fills, that is, for working with a wet brush.

There are techniques in painting that are suitable for working with a dry brush. How to draw in gouache images of tree crowns, grassy backgrounds, objects with an uneven or textured surface? In this case, it is better to use bristle brushes. The shape of the brushes will depend on the shape of the strokes. It is better to depict the grass with flat brushes, and the crown of trees with round ones. In this case, gouache diluted to the density of sour cream is collected on a dry brush made of hog bristles and point strokes are made with the brush on the working surface of the picture. It can be compared to stuffing paint on a work surface.

How to paint with gouache not only with brushes. Can be painted with foam sponge, special rollers or a crumpled paper napkin. All this allows you to depict objects with a complex surface structure and achieve realistic images of many materials, such as rough ceramics or stone, or by painting a still life with gouache.

gouache still life

Painting techniques using gouache. Gouache lessons.

There are two ways to create a background for gouache:
. Uniform shading of the contours of a pencil sketch. First, the artist makes a pencil sketch on the art surface, and then spreads the primary colors as fills for the outlines of the drawing. It is important to remember here that for the initial underpainting, the darkest tones of the drawing elements are taken. In order for the gouache to lay flat and without streaks, you need to pay attention to the size of the brush. The larger the outline to be painted, the larger the brush should be. Gouache, in this case, should be diluted to the consistency of thin sour cream. It’s also not worth picking up too much pigment on the brush; it’s better to wipe off the excess on the edge of the palette. You need to fill the contour without pressure, from one of its edges to the center, and then from the center to the other edge of the contour. This type of underpainting is not suitable for large surfaces.
. For large surfaces, another type of staining is selected - filling. In this case, the background of the drawing is first made, and then, on a dried background, the work itself is written. The background may consist of two or three primary colors in the range of the pattern. For example, when painting a landscape, they take: the color of the sky, the color of the earth, the color for the light strip above the horizon. A sheet of paper is well attached to the tablet, it is better to glue all the edges masking tape. Then they spread the colors: the color of the sky at the top, the color of the earth below, the lightest in the horizon. And then, until the paint is dry, smooth the paint with a wide wet brush. The brush must be carried without interruption, from one left edge of the sheet to the right, moving from the bottom of the work to the top. Then we wet the brush in water, shake off the excess, and smooth the paint from the top of the sheet to the bottom, moving the brush horizontally. In order for the background to turn out to be even and beautiful, training is needed. However, the result is worth the effort. When the background is smoothed out and the paint is still wet, the details of the hills are blown in with the darker paint chosen for the ground. After drying the main background and the formed details of the landscape, they write vegetation, clouds and other details of the planned composition.

gouache flower

Paintings in gouache. To technicians gouache painting relate:
. Glaze- a method that consists in applying transparent layers of other tones over the main color. By overlapping the base color with translucent layers, a new deep shade is obtained. For gouache, this method is available in the same way as for watercolor. Just gouache needs to be diluted quite strongly with water so that it becomes transparent. Using the glazing technique, you can create a unique fog effect, gouache is perfect for this.
. Pastose technique gouache is also available. This technique consists of applying thick, opaque paint to the work surface. This technique is mainly oil painting. Texture, light and shadow in paintings painted in pastose technique depend not only on color, but also on the shape and direction of the applied strokes. Gouache can also work in this style, especially if it is based on PVA or acrylic. When working in a pasty technique and using ordinary art gouache, you need to remember that too thick a layer of this paint tends to crack and crumble after drying. Therefore, you need to very carefully add layers of thick gouache to the canvas in order to get the “golden mean” necessary for this technique and material.
. There is another technique in which gouache can be used. It is called sgraffito. This technique is similar to engraving. Layer on paper light paint and wait for it to dry. Then apply a thick, even layer dark paint. After the top layer has dried, they take a drawing pen, stylus, just a thick needle or a clerical knife, and draw with them, removing the dark layer of paint from the lower light layer. It is best to keep the top coat of paint dry, but fresh enough so that the paint does not flake off. You need to act carefully, the movements must be accurate.
. In addition, gouache is excellently used in mixed media painting. For example, the background is done with gouache, and the drawing on the background with acrylic. Flowers with gouache and acrylic are very spectacular.

sketch of a girl in gouache

Care of the instrument when working with gouache.

You need to remember the property of gouache to clog pile soft brushes, so it is better to wash the brushes immediately in a jar with plenty of warm water. To do this, you need to thoroughly rinse the brush, leading the pile along the bottom of the container with water.

After finishing work with gouache, you need to rinse the brushes under a stream of warm running water. You also need to wash the palettes with paint residues, as dried gouache can paint over the palette, especially if it is plastic. Gouache dries very quickly, so all paint cans must be tightly closed. If you leave unclosed jars of paint after work, you risk finding there, instead of soft, plastic gouache, petrified pieces of dried pigment.

In addition, you need to monitor the condition of your paints. Gouache tends to thicken over time, even if you remember to close it. This property of this material can lead to its complete drying. You can restore the original quality of the drying material by dropping half a teaspoon of hot boiled water into the paint (this is on a standard small jar). Then the gouache should be closed and left for 30 minutes, after which it should be thoroughly mixed with the stick or reverse end of the brush.

If your gouache has dried up to the state of a stone, then you can try to revive it, but this does not always work out. To do this, pour a little into each jar hot water, so that only a couple of millimeters cover the surface of the dried paint, and then put it for three hours in a warm place. In winter, a battery is suitable for this, and in summer a sunny window sill. Then you need to mix the pigment thoroughly. If the dried pieces still remain, you can try to repeat the procedure described above. If this does not help, then everything is over with your paint and you can only throw it away. True, it can be used as a dry watercolor for sketches and rough sketches. It is impossible to reanimate dried acrylic gouache, it turns into an insoluble, hard polymer.

I wish you creative success in working with gouache!