Opaque Watercolor and Gouache

The “Magic of Watercolor” is based on its transparency. A wash of watercolor sparkles because the white paper shows through the thin coating of pigments is opaque which allows one to paint light areas over dark, just as in oils and acrylics. This kind of watercolor is called gouache. Gouache has larger particles and more pigment in its binder, and it also includes an inert powdered material such as chalk. These make gouache heavy, opaque, and more reflective than watercolor. In this workshop, students alter their approach to painting watercolor and find that they can also alter their style when using this different medium.

The structure will be as follows:
Ahead of time, the instructor will email the registered students a Word document describing the theme of the workshop. A materials list and a folder containing appropriate photos will also be emailed that students can choose to use during the workshop. They also can use their own photos. The instructor will also email the photo he will use each day for his demonstration painting.

Each day:

Instructor painting demonstration at 10:00am – not to exceed 45 minutes
Student painting until about 12:30PM
Return for critique and discussion of student work – 30 minutes