Last Fall, I took a gouache class last at the Gage Academy. It was my first time painting since my youth, besides a few 1-off classes at Blick. I found it to be very immersive and it satisfied a need for tactile activity that is lacking in my job.
Gouache is a unique medium, kind of like a cross between oil and watercolor. The main challenge is getting the right consistency, which can be achieved by adding water. The ideal consistency is creamy and drips from the brush. Consistency is key to opacity. And opacity is key to layering. I definitely have not mastered it.
Here are a few take-aways from the class.
•You can use Bristol paper, drawing paper, Moleskin notebooks. The teacher prefers smooth paper for small detail. (Others like textured paper).
•White is the most important color.
•Use a spray bottle to rehydrate/reactivate paint. But paint straight out of tube is nicer.
•You can put 2 whites on palette - 1 to muddy and 1 to keep clean.
•Some people prefer Payne’s Gray to black for darkening.
•Permanent white is more opaque than zinc white.
•Blot on paper towel, cloth.
•Use cheap brushes, acrylic brushes, synthetic w/ finer bristles.
•Try to use thick paint (not too much water), especially for background in case you want to layer or correct.
•Water changes the value of the paint, like when you swirl the brush between uses.
•Try to view a figure/the subject as a bunch of shapes.
•Squint at the figure/subject to view the shapes and not details.
•Can move closer to figure/subject if need to see details.
•Ask yourself whether you need to adjust the moment or the area around it.
•When choosing colors/shades, look for relationships between colors of areas of subject (“moments of connection”).
Here are some ideas for practice exercises:
•Try to sketch in 60 seconds.
•Try to sketch/paint in large shapes.
•Try to sketch in 60 seconds without picking up your pencil.
•Draw/paint from an upside down reference picture.
•Try painting without using neutral colors.
•Try to paint something transparent, like a glass bottle.
I signed up for a gouache landscape course with the same teacher. I’m hoping the subject matter will be simpler than humans. But that is to be seen!
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