I've always said that I could spend a dozen lifetimes working in oils and never feel like I've mastered the medium. I have avoided other mediums in order to maintain my focus and not get distracted with new "toys". But then a good friend who had recently become enamored with gouache (and who had tried in vain to get me to use it) sent me a complete kit: paint, sketchbook, brushes, and best of all...a handmade wooden box/easel. At that point, my only options were to be rude to my friend or to try it out!
Much to my delight, I found that I love painting in gouache. This forgiving medium dries quickly, allowing for layering without the danger of creating mud (which is so easy to do in oil). The colors are vibrant and velvety, and the clean-up is a breeze. After years of ruining every single article of clothing I've ever worn while oil painting and getting permanent paint splatters on every surface around me, it's such a joy to just wash everything off with plain water. I still can't get over the fact that once I'm done with the painting, I can just close my sketchbook and not worry about smearing wet paint. Overall, it's a great medium for travel and times when solvents aren't readily available.
But gouache is not oil paint and takes a little getting used to. Once I stopped trying to use it the same way as oil and appreciated its unique characteristics, I had a lot more fun with it. You can't achieve the thick, textural effects with gouache that oil can produce. I have found that the colors are a little bit more saturated than oils and take some trial-and-error to get the right mix. Most colors dry darker, which can be confounding and frustrating until you learn to compensate for that. And I can't use my finger to smudge lines and soften edges, a habit that's hard for me to break.
As with oils, I try to use the minimum number of supplies when I paint in gouache. It's so easy to be a "gearhead" and keep buying things that you think will improve your painting when what you really need to do is just sit down and paint. I am by no means an expert at gouache, but I've had many requests for recommended supplies. With that in mind, here's a list of my current gouache supplies:
Easel: Any easel will do, especially smaller pochade or "thumb boxes". You'll also need a couple of clips to hold the paper onto the easel.
Paints: I chose M Graham paints because they're made with honey (who knew?) and that gives them a longer "open time" before the paint skins over and dries out. I started with a sample set of primaries and have just stuck with that. You can either order the set or these individual colors: Titanium White, Azo Yellow, Naphthol Red, Cobalt Blue, and Ivory Black.
*Tip: squeeze out your paints onto a wet paper towel to keep them from drying out too fast.
Brushes: I love Richeson's Gray Matters Synthetic Pocket Brushes For Oil and Acrylic. They're the size of a regular brush, but they have an ingenious way of coming apart for storage and transport, allowing them to fit easily in my small easel box. I use rounds, size 4 and 8.
Paper: I use either a Pentalic Aquajournal 5x8" or Canson Cold Press watercolor block 6x9. I've been sticking to small sizes so far.
Water container: Collapsible silicone, available from Amazon.
Paper towels
That's it! I've had so much fun playing around with this new medium, and I find that it's helped me explore new ways to approach my oil, too. I'll post more about gouache in the coming months, so stay tuned!
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