Surely everyone, as a child, painted with brushes on a white sheet in kindergarten and labor lessons, because the words "gouache" and "watercolor" are familiar to absolutely everyone, regardless of the profession they acquired in the future.
But before you find out how gouache differs from watercolor, you should understand both concepts.
Who are they?
Gouache comes from the Italian word guazzo and in translation means "water paint". It is a type of artificial paint, the ability of which is the ability to dissolve in water.
Watercolor translated from French - "watery". It refers to adhesive (binders - dextrin with gum arabic) paints, the solvent of which is water.
Differences
Perhaps the main difference is the following:
- gouache has a more dense, opaque and generally opaque layer;
- watercolor is appreciated for transparency, purity, softness and thinness of the layer.
In application:
- watercolor is used only on paper;
- for gouache, the basis is not only paper, but also harder surfaces, such as fabric, cardboard or crafts made from salt dough.
Properties:
- watercolor is very practical and convenient in the workflow, because due to its peculiarity, you can safely fix and correct defects even with a wet fleece;
- Gouache is much harder to print due to its denser texture.
Structure:
- When dried, gouache does not become glossy, but rather with a matte shade and lighter than with the initial smear. This process occurs due to the whitewash that is part of the composition. And this is its huge plus: due to an error, a dark color can be corrected by applying a few shades of paint lighter.
- With watercolor, this process is not possible. She either mixes both colors in herself, or overlaps one with the other.
Color:
- in gouache with the help of white, you can create many shades;
- there is no white color in the watercolor; it is replaced by the paper itself, leaving a space on it.
Worth knowing:
- if you are just starting to get acquainted with fine art, then you should start with watercolor, as it is easier to manage and much easier to remove errors.
Acrylic
The composition of acrylic paint includes acrylic and resins. They lay down evenly enough and dry at a fast speed.
How is gouache different from acrylic paints?
- Acrylic does not burn out and retains its original color perfectly.
- Acrylic does not spill over time, either from paper or from other substrates.
- After drying, the paint darkens.
- Acrylic is suitable for watercolor painting.
Total
The choice for both aspiring artists and professionals is very large.
Now you know how gouache differs from watercolors with acrylic, and with the help of which colors to bring your inspiration into the light of art, it is up to you to decide.