Water soluable paint used in the SCA to recreate illumianated art in a pre-17th century style.
Hey all! Just like the seven deadly sins, art media have their own tricky behaviors that can be challenging to manage. The secret to mastering them is knowing how to avoid or limit their effects. As a scribe, I’ve made every mistake possible. Those mishaps were my gouache learning experiences, helping me spot its “sins.”…
One thing I look for when I want to learn a new skill is a list of all the things a brand new person would need to start. I could ask people who are more skilled than I am but I tend to be a bit socially awkward and I also sometimes feel like it harder for me to…
I often read James Gurney‘s blog the Gurney Journey. Gurney is the Dinotopia guy. His art is amazing and his posts inspiring. Recently, I found a post of his I think you’ll find interesting. Some gouache tests his associate Cathy Gura ran comparing gouache brands rewetting behaviors. She also compared their consistency and of all things their…
Recently at our scribal meeting, I was asked about how I use my gouache palette. Do I put out new paints for each painting session? Do I reconstitute the dried paint in its well? What do I do if the paint breaks into small bits? All great questions. This is what I do. You may…
M. Giraude’s scroll showing gouache ink interspace lines and filigree. Here’s something intriguing I tried on M. Giraude’s scroll. And it worked well. Better than I expected. I used gouache as ink. Since then I see several modern calligraphers online have done it. So my apologies if this is common knowledge. Even so, I am…
Today’s scribes learning to paint Calontir’s preprints often start with a Reeves gouache set for their paints. They’re an inexpensive student grade non-acrylic paint that does well for painting entry-level awards. What do you do when you use up your first paint, usually white? What is the best white gouache to buy?” In gouache, there are…
There are two general gouache price points, affordable and expensive. With affordable gouache paints, I get the look and feel I expect just not its full potential. Gouache paint consists of pigment suspended in a binder, usually gum Arabic, just as is watercolor. However gouache has larger particles and more pigment in its binder. It…
Like the seven deadly sins, art media have behaviors that are a challenge to overcome. The key to dealing with them is avoiding or limiting their effects. As a scribe, I’ve messed up work every way possible. Those were my gouache learning experiences while detecting its sins. Let me tell you what I’ve found. An…
Iluminators were known to layer paints more than mix them. Yet there are written notes and illuminations that show they mixed colors too, especially later in the Middle Ages. Mixing colors makes its own problems. The more colors you combine, eventually ends with mud. Over-mixing also dulls the paint combination. Learn by doing: mix two gouache primary colors…
My rocks for paint collection. Every year this question pops up in the scribes guild, “Is gouache period?” I use it because it is more convenient than making paint from rocks and plants. I get favorable results, too. But, how Medieval is it? I have a tangled answer. Unfortunately, it is a lengthy story. To…
Scribes painting preprint scrolls. When I was painting preprint awards with scribes at a recent event, I was asked what colors I preferred. I had commented on colors I missed having because the paints provided for our use were Reeves gouache paint sets. I missed the colors I used at home. Gouache is an opaque watercolor used by…
Teaching scribes in the Barony of the Lonely Tower I’ve been asked the difference between watercolor and gouache paints. I thought you would like to know too. Simply put, watercolor paints are transparent, gouache paints are opaque. That’s it in a nutshell. Watercolor paints use the white of the “paper” for their white. Lighter gouache…