Discussion: Gouache BRAND COMPARISON

[Old Tex]

I agree that of the choices you mentioned, the Schmincke Horadam and M.Graham are the best. I use M. Graham and love them. I’m a certifiable color junkie and coming from pastels I wanted all the colors, but as I paint I’m beginning to realize how few colors I really [I]need[/I]. One drawback to the Grahams is that if you go out to paint on location and are so blessed as to have honeybees in your area (fast disappearing, it seems), you will be troubled by them! The honey component in the mix is quite attractive to them.

I’m going to take Ralph’s advice and invest in some larger tubes of DaVinci. What whites do you recommend, Ralph?? I’d like one more transparent and one more opaque, given the choice.

Deborah

Deborah, I’m not going to be much help, I’m afraid. You know me… I tend to stay with what works for me. I only use titanium white. I suspect it’s more opaque than any of the others. Maybe David Clemons or Richard Saylor have experience with other whites.

The only place I’ve found online that carries DaVinci is Cheap Joe’s. If you find it cheaper, please let me know!

[FONT=Arial Narrow]RALPH

[FONT=Arial Narrow]My Art Showcase blog: www.ralphparkerart.wordpress.com
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[Deborah Secor]

Looks like titanium white is all they have anyway, Ralph, so that’s an easy decision. If it’s like the W&N it’s fairly opaque. That’ll do!

Deborah

Deborah

"All glory to Him, who alone is God our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord."
Landscape Painting in Pastels (free online book)
Gouache Blog

[Richard Saylor]

I’ve used W&N Zinc White Designers Gouache. It’s significantly more transparent than Titanium White.

Richard

C&C is welcome.
Richard

[russell44]

Windsor and Newton is no longer the great company from England. It was sold and most products including Gouache and Oils are made in China. The oils now have more linseed oil even the studio class. I am sure they will find a way to use less pigments in the Gouache also. Just a thought.

[FONT=Times New Roman]Old War Horse

[JamieWG]

Deborah, I’ve found the DaVinci gouache to be okay if used right away. The leftover paint is really useless once it dries, so just put out what you need and keep refilling the palette. The paint is not as opaque as WN or Holbein, and the Cadmium colors are not available. Be careful with the yellows; I remember that one of the cooler yellows is mixed with white. If you want to use that yellow to temper any dark mixes, it won’t work the way you plan.

Jamie

Hudson Valley Painter[/url]
Hudson Valley Sketches -- Reviews/Lightfastness Tests/Art Materials [/url]
One year from now, you'll wish you had started today.

[dbclemons]

Da Vinci also carries a line of watercolors that is pigment rich in the same size tubes as their gouache, and offers more color choices including cadmiums. I wouldn’t recommend trying to build up any thickness with them, but otherwise there’s not much difference. The watercolors should rewet more easily also.

David Blaine Clemons
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[Larry Seiler]

I think I’m coming to some conclusion that one’s paint methods determine more how critical the differences between the brands are. I mean the transparency comparencies to pigment strength using gouache say from a more watercolor background methodology versus say someone as myself using the paint more creamy or thicker? Just thinking out loud here…because having started using gouache (after near thirty years painting) only this past September…I anticipated working with Holbein…(from what I was informed as some of the best) that a huge broad difference …good or bad…would make itself dramatically understood straight away when a good artist /friend gave me a set of Yarka student grade 40 ml pots. Those familiar with the works I’ve posted would not notice any change.
I found the Yarkas surprisingly pleasant to work with.

Larry Seiler- Signature Member IPAP; Signature Member American Impressionist Society AIS
Main website! https://larryseiler-artist.com/

[Old Tex]

I think I’m coming to some conclusion that one’s paint methods determine more how critical the differences between the brands are. ~Larry Seiler

There it is in a nutshell.

[FONT=Arial Narrow]RALPH

[FONT=Arial Narrow]My Art Showcase blog: www.ralphparkerart.wordpress.com
[FONT=Arial Narrow]My Everything Else blog: www.ralphparker.wordpress.com

[jumbocanvas]

Hello everyone. Newbie at this site and enjoying myself as I try to soak up all of your great comments/knowledge. I am curious about your thoughts on combining of both W/C and Gouache. I like having both opacity and transparency.

Also, do you think Davinci is my best bet for large tubes? The quality and color selection of Graham draws me but I paint on very large (20×30 in or larger) panels. With Graham or similar, one painting could reach close to $100 in paint alone so Davinci’s large tubes seem like a smart move. FYI, I use Daniel Smith W/C in the 15 ml tubes. This works ok given how far a good W/C can be stretched, but I seem to go thru Gouache a lot faster. Should I perhaps go with Davinci for my basic Gouache palette and then accent/augment with the Graham product?

[dbclemons]

…This works ok given how far a good W/C can be stretched, but I seem to go thru Gouache a lot faster…

If you’re concerned about the costs by volume of paint for small size tubes I’d suggest making your own paint. It’s simple to do and cost effective.

Here’s a thread I wrote on the subject:
https://www.wetcanvas.com/forums/showthread.php?t=588997

Otherwise, DaVinci is a good choice.

David Blaine Clemons
----------------
My Website
My Blog

[jumbocanvas]

Thanks for the idea David. I think I would actually enjoy experimenting with this. I think I will work with Davinci large tubes first and see how large my works get. I like to work on panels and Ampersand will custom cut panels up to 44×90 inches, I believe. In such a theoretical case, I might very well take to making my own. Will let you know how I make out. Stephen

[MichaelFraley]

I began painting with the Reeves student colours, and eventually found myself in the comical position of running out of white and trying to replace it with a tube of Winsor Newton titanium white. That was sort of like trying to make the Reeves paints dance with Winsor Newton’s 400 pound gorilla. Even a little white just completely overpowered the Reeves stuff, but it gave me a taste of what “real gouache” should be like.

I couldn’t afford the WN tubes at the local art supply store, so I searched online for something better than Reeves but which would still be affordable for me. The Turner gouache paints turned out to be a great choice.

I’ve only purchased one tube of Lukas gouache, and the paint was dry in the tube. That sort of left me with a poor opinion of their paint, but I try to tell myself that it was just a fluke, and that I ought to give it another chance.

[dledmunds]

I use Holbein and I think for the cost it is a very good gouache. One of the factors that I consider is cost. I recently added some (Hobby Lobby) Royal Talens colors….the big difference is the thickness….Royal Talens is not as heavy as the Holbein, which I like. Also use Windsor Newton Permanent White because of the color…very white….also available in large tubes for a good price. Have used a few of the Windsor Newton colors, but comparable to Holbein, so why spend more money…go with the Holbein which is less cost.

C & C's always Welcome! Deb

http://dledmunds.blogspot.com
www.zazzle.com/edmundsdl

[jumbocanvas]

Hi Shari. FYI, I just place a large order for Davinci Gouache from Cheap Joes. All of their Davinci products are on sale 50 % off plus an additional 10 % for orders over 75.00 I ordered over 10 tubes and will post a review here of what I think of them. Rob Howard gave them a very respectable rating in his book Gouache for Illustrators. I will let you know what I think of these when they arrive, which I hope is in a few days. I work in a mix of WC and Gouache so I know we have a lot more choice in WC brands than we do Gouache. There are some other posts from artists here who also like the Davinci. Will let you know.

[journalicious]

This is a VERY old thread, so I don’t know if anyone will be reading this, but I thought I’d take a shot. I am currently trying to learn to work with gouache. Trying to learn…exactly! Wow…as easy as watercolors are…so hard is it to work with gouache. Especially layers. I just found out it helps to add gum arabic to help stop smudging the underlying layers. But I was wondering, does it matter how well you can work in layers what brand you use? I use Talens extra fine (I’m in the Netherlands and little else is available), but I’m looking at Winsor and Newton now. I’m thinking of ordering a nice colour palette. But is it worth it? Is the difference big enough for this investment? I don’t know if you know Talens…I didn’t see it in the thread, but perhaps somebody can enlighten me on this.

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