Pablo Picasso's "Boy With A Dog" (gouache on cardboard).
The colouring medium avowed as gouache (pronounced "gwash" to rhyme with "squash") has been used for centuries--all the habit back to decrepit Egypt. Gouache is coincident to watercolor paint, on the other hand its ingredients profit colour that is exceeding saturated and earnest. It dries quickly and is specious to be applied thickly, as opposed to the thin washes of watercolor paint.
What Makes Gouache Different
Properties of Gouache
Mastering the water-to-paint ratio is critical when working with gouache paints. Your paint should be the consistency of heavy cream.Gum arabic, made from sap tapped from the acacia tree found in tropical and subtropical climates, is refined into a powder and added to pigment. This process renders gouache different from watercolor paint, giving it more color intensity and faster drying times. The addition of gum arabic to the pigment allows it to be rewet, so you can change your painting.
Applying it too thickly can cause cracking. If you layer your paint, the first layer must be totally dry. As gouache dries, its color value changes. Dark colors dry lighter, and light colors dry darker. Experimenting with gouache is the best way to learn its properties. Use this paint for small sharp detail work.
Tools and Preservation
Use natural or synthetic brushes depending on the finish texture you are trying to achieve. You can also use pens or an airbrush. Gouache can be used on canvas, watercolor paper, white or tinted pastel paper or matte board. Heavy paper gives a better surface for the paint. Preserve your artwork mounted behind glass with a spacer between the painting and the glass.
