Gouache with Glycerin - WetCanvas: Online Living for Artists

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October 13, 2017 at 2:47 pm #995325
dpnrj
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Hey all,

Its been a while since I’ve posted anything. I wanted to share a technique I tried out last weekend, that has me excited to try again this weekend.

I’ve been working with gouache for about a year now. I love the medium, but there are a few frustrations that bother me.
1. Darks dry lighter and lights dry darker – nothing like a total shift in to middle tones to ruin a painting.
2. It drys too fast. I would love to one day paint exclusively in oil, but I just don’t have the time with work and family. Gouache is my goto substitute because it dries quickly, but I want the paint to stay alive on the paper to allow for wet blending.

I came across an article somewhere, we someone mentioned keeping watercolor wet longer with glycerine. I believe their recommendation was to add a few drops to the water. I figured I would try using it while mixing (like linseed/turp mix in oil painting).

I picked a reference from the RIL and gave it a try. This work is pure experiment and a bit messy, but I think I can refine the approach after a few more attempts. Using glycerine did resolve my 2 frustrations, but I will have to get the feel for water/glycerine balance. Additionally, the painting was glossy in a few spots where I used too much glycerine – interestingly only in the darks. I coat all my gouache paintings with a finish of dorland’s wax when I’m done, and this evened out the gloss. (I believe I got the Dorland’s wax tip from Yorky on this forum)

Here’s my setup…

Glycerin – 5 bucks on amazon. USP grade means I don’t have to worry about any additives.

I use a very limited palette (Aliz Hue or QRed, Cad Yellow, Ultra Blue, Burnt Umber, white). I admire the people who can squeeze out 12 colors and maintain harmony. I make mud if I don’t mix everything from the basics. The small puddle in the left is the glycerin I used and left out all week to see if it would stand/dry. It got a little muddy, but that is because I wasn’t careful about cleaning my brush when picking some up. Since my colors are all mixed from a small set, I don’t have to fanatical about super clean brushes while working.

Painting with glycerin in 9×12 Canson 400 gray sketchbook

Painting without gylcerin, same sketchbook, previous page. Same color palette.

Neither painting is an award winner, but the one with glycerin allowed me to blend wet/wet on the forehead and cheek. Looking at the cheek on the non-glycerin version, you can see where I struggled with it. Additionally, I added far too many light glazes on the non-glycerin page because of the dreaded color shift. I didn’t have this trouble with the glycerin page; it is a bit dark, but mostly because I haven’t painted that flesh tone often.

Has anyone else tried this approach or anything similar? Any tips?

Thanks for looking,

Jim
October 13, 2017 at 3:48 pm #1272841
MarialenaS
I use glycerine when I make my own watercolours. Not in the water but in the pigment mix that is made of gum arabic, honey and glycerin + the pigment of my choice.

The idea of adding some glycerine in your gouache is not wrong. By adding glycerine you increase the amount of water that gouache holds and so it doesn’t dry so chalky which is the reason why gouache colours change colour when dry.

I would wait though to see if there would be a colour shifting in the long run when the gouache mix will dry further.

I can’t give any other tips because I don’t work with gouache, but it sounds as a good idea.

https://www.marialenasarris.com/
October 13, 2017 at 4:42 pm #1272840
LynnMac Ontario, Canada
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Very interesting process, yes, it will be good to see how it dries. I like both your portraits.

Cheers, Lynn
www.fineartamerica.com/profiles/lynn-macintyre
"Ring the bells that still can ring, Forget your perfect offering, There is a crack in everything, That's how the light gets in" Leonard Cohen
October 14, 2017 at 7:11 am #1272838
Yorky Administrator Ormskirk
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Does it stay moist in the palette?

Doug

We must leave our mark on this world
October 14, 2017 at 9:29 am #1272842
MarialenaS
Glycerine attracts moisture and makes any colour mix a bit more – how to say it now- elastic, creamy, juicy, jelly.. ( I don’t know if you get it now.. I don’t know how to write it).
Gouache has by default the tendency to dry rock hard and crack in heavy applications and look chalky after drying for the same reason. When you use glycerine in your gouache you increase the moisture in the mix and also make it more elastic, is something like using acrylic medium in acrylics in order not to allow them to dry that fast. Same concept.

But glycerine is not a synthetic medium and though it will allow the paintings to dry at some point, I wouldn’t be sure if it will allow them to retain the colour brightness or the colours will shift again in the long run.
So I would suggest to do the following test.
Paint something this way, then let it dry normally, and then cut the painting in two halves and store the one in a plastic sleeve envelope or shopping bag and the other one into your sketchbook. Then come back after two three months and check if you had any kind of colour shifting between these two halves.

The concept is to see if glycerine will retain the brightness and shininess of the colour in time or it just changes the behaviour of the colour for as long as you work it ( and some time afterwards) and then the gouache colours return to their original condition and character.

Also check if glycerine makes any awkward reactions with the usual gouache varnishes. ( fixatives, waxes and such things).

https://www.marialenasarris.com/
October 14, 2017 at 11:06 am #1272839
dpnrj
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Marialena,
Thanks for your insights. My internet searches led me to believe I wasn’t doing something completely crazy, but knowing you mix glycerin into your homemade paints is comforting validation.

As for the tests. I’ve only been painting with gouache in a sketchbook. If I paint something on canvas/quality paper, I try to use oils/watercolor/charcoal. Almost everything I do is in a sketchbook because I’m still learning. Sketchbooks are portable. I can rip out or turn the page when frustrated/unhappy with a work. I can do quick color charts on the back page and take notes. My work isn’t out there in the world to critique unless I am seeking feedback.

I’ve been working my latest sketchbook for just about a year. My earliest stuff done with Reeve’s gouache looks chalky, but anything I’ve done with M. Graham looks fresh. M. Graham is my fav for gouache and watercolor — the honey binder, I think. Some people like the matte finish with gouache, but I prefer the light gloss that the Dorland wax provides. Almost all my pages are waxed. Both paintings in this post were waxed. I will keep an eye out over the next few months to see if there is a difference.

Yorky,
Yes, the paints stay wet on the palette longer. I use a waterproof palette box and lay my paints out on a damp paper towel. I can keep the paint alive there 1-2 weeks. Without glycerin, the paint dries quickly in the mixing area. With water only I spritz it, but it can quickly become too runny and I have to wipe the area.

I have a halogen desk lamp with a white bulb cover. It gives off a lot of heat without harsh light. I put the painting under that for about an hour to dry the spots where I used too much glycerin. I do the same for oil paintings that I want to work on the next day. I don’t use thick layers and work fat over lean, so I don’t worry too much about cracking.

Thanks,
Jim
October 14, 2017 at 11:21 am #1272843
Perylene
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This is great information–I hadn’t heard about gouache and glycerin before, but considering the hygroscopic properties of glycerin, it makes sense. Good questions are being raised regarding the archival impact of glycerin on gouache, but it seems like if your work is primarily for illustration (with the final product being a scanned image), this poses a lot of advantages. I’m definitely going to be experimenting with this!
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