Gouache - The Spirit of Matter -Orbach and Galkin, 1997
- nonaorbach
- Feb 13
- 7 min read
Updated: Feb 28
Medium Characteristics
Gouache is a soluble pigmented liquid or paste. It offers many creative options, as different colors blend well with each other and can be worked in many ways - from transparent to opaque, from dry to wet, from seemingly insubstantial to thick, layered and almost three-dimensional. Gouache can also easily cover large areas and is nearly entirely removable with water, leaving a stained-hued surface. Varied tools lend themselves to gouache, from fingers and palms to sponges, rags, brushes, spatulas and more.
Therapeutic and Spiritual Significance
As a multifaceted material, gouache constitutes a metaphor for a large range of emotions. It comprises of many risks. It offers a visual rendition of the painter's inner world, evoking dramatic experiences and feelings. Release may be expressed by coating a large area quickly; anger and aggression may express themselves through drumming, splashing, smearing on large paper, throwing paint or hurling it with instruments. Gouache reflects the creator’s ability to conquer large territories with dramatic colors and broad brushes as he discovers his inner strengths and qualities.
Standing in front of an easel or paint wall to work with gouache enables a wide range of movement while creating a variety of shapes and sizes, somewhat like a dancer leaving his footprints. With paper hung vertically, the liquid-like gouache may have inadvertent results. The matter has a life of its own, inviting surprises and arousing a wide spectrum of emotions. It affords a direct encounter with sensuality and sexuality that may raise feelings of rejection and discomfort or alternatively, freedom, independence and vitality.
The creator chooses his substrate, and his choices have a diagnostic-therapeutic value. Drawing standing up implies a firm, stable client who is coping with responsibility throughout the process. Standing opposite the artwork is like looking at a reflection of the inner being. The artist can approach it and move away from it, go back to look at it and respond. From up close he can see the details of the work and from a distance he can view it as a whole. The process of zooming in and out is a dialogue between the details and the whole. Standing affords creating in enormous dimensions - an impossible feat when working on a table. Moreover, using wide brushes and rollers increases the feeling of conquest and power. Since the material is wet and heavy, especially on large surfaces, the painter must develop a sense of respect and sensitivity to the paper's ability to bear weight and liquid. The paper is a major player in the process, and if its abilities and limitations are not taken into consideration, it will collapse. Familiarity with its characteristics gives the creator a sense of control, competence and confidence, in an attempt to honor and respect the reality of life.
Despite all of the above, it is also possible to work with gouache sitting down. This implies utilizing small brushes and sheets of paper, while working slowly and meditatively. Loading the paint and mixing it on the palette, and painting based on a primary sketch, all result in an experience of concentration and control within a small and safe framework. There is a sense of rituality when working with gouache. Actions are repeated; dipping the paintbrush in water, wiping it, loading paint, placing it on the paper. There is a refrain of moving away and approaching. These rhythmic actions constitute the base of the inner rhythm of the creative process, and when the creator acquires these skills they become an anchor for deep emotional work. It is a framework that provides security, order and organization, and setting limits from which one can break out into more adventurous emotional experiences. The whole body participates when working with gouache. It is a dramatic process connecting body, spirit and matter.
Surfaces and Tools
Brushes - hard, flat and round, in all sizes.
Soft paintbrushes - for transparent work. o Toothbrushes - add textures and spread color.
Spatulas - for spreading thick layers of paint, etching and creating textures.
Paint rollers - in a variety of sizes, hard, soft, spongy, etc. Each will create a different effect. Dip the roller in paint on a flat surface or plate and roll it on the paper. Different amounts of pressure on the roller will create different textures.
Rags - dry or wet, squeezed, folded in different ways. Rags can be used to wipe off extra paint, reveal hidden layers, apply paint, print a texture and so on. Water should be available for washing the rag when working. o Sponges - different shapes and lengths. Different amounts of color, water and pressure while using the sponge will create different effects.
Syringes - very diluted gouache should be prepared for working with syringes, each color in a separate jar. There is therapeutic value to learning how to work within the limits of the paper and keeping the workspace clean when using the syringe.
Etching tools - different wooden sticks and twigs can be used for etching, revealing surfaces or spreading paint.
Branches - branches and leaves of different sizes and shapes can be used with gouache. Dipping a branch in paint and whipping, pressing, pulling, squeezing, pushing, all produce different results.
Thickeners - gouache can be thickened by adding condensing powder, or sand and sawdust. Painting with a thicker substance will create three-dimensional art.
White glue - can be used as a final, slightly shiny glaze, covering the works when they are completely dry. The glue should be diluted in water at a ratio of about fifty-fifty, and then spread evenly with a broad brush on the dry painting.
Surfaces - it is recommended to use thick sheets of paper, like construction cardboard, plywood, or American poster paper on its textured side.
Working with Gouache
It is preferable to work with gouache on an easel or paint wall.
Prepare: a palette with wells or stable cups; a large vessel with water for washing brushes and dilution; a variety of brushes and rags to wipe the brushes after cleaning.
Gouache naturally causes stains and may, therefore, be experienced as threatening. Stained clothes may trigger feelings of anxiety and guilt. An apron or work shirt can alleviate this. It is also important to learn how to thoroughly rinse the brush between each color and mix colors on a palette with wells or small glasses. This will ensure clean, clear colors instead of muddy shades resulting from mixing on paper. If larger amounts of paint are needed, they can be mixed in jars.
Blending Colors
Mixing color should be done on palettes with wells or in jars. To mix colors in a palette with wells, two wells serve as the "warehouses" from which color is taken and moved to a third well to be mixed. To change the tone, double or triple one of the colors into a fourth well and so on, until a series of shades is created. A bit of each shade should be sampled on paper to test the colors and the possibilities of creating new tones.
In general, it is better to add the darker color into the lighter one gradually. Mix well and check if the resulting color is the desired one. If it is too light, add a bit more of the darker color. This is the more economical method. Adding the lighter color to the darker one requires a larger amount of paint to achieve the desired shade.
Blending three colors: mixing together the three basic colors (blue, red, and yellow) creates some shade of brown. For example: blue and orange necessarily create a brown-grayish shade, purple and yellow will also result in a shade of the brown-gray family of colors. Adding white to this mix of colors will create a gray shade. Adding black will darken the color.
A beginner should be offered a choice of a pair of primary colors and add white, black, or a "cousin" color. For example, if choosing yellow and blue, a "cousin" may be turquoise, purple, ocher, and so on. In other words, there are two main players and the additional one implies the missing third primary color. After gaining skill with basic color blending and control over the quantities of paint needed for mixing, it is time to experiment and create shades using the entire palette of colors. For example, combining green and red in such amounts that the color will remain green, but with a brown hue to it. This is the point of departure for the painter as he acquired a good, controlled technique and an understanding of color and blends.
The different tools and techniques create different relationships between the gouache and the surface. Sponges and rags evoke tactile and sensual sensations. Paintbrushes and spatulas create greater physical distance from the wet paint, resulting in somewhat less emotional involvement. Systematic work implies an accumulation of knowledge, experience and intensity, as well as delayed gratification and emotional and technical flexibility. All these reflect the scope of gouache as a medium and the artist's skill.
Completing the work and organizing the work area is of the utmost therapeutic and educational significance. Changing the water, washing the brushes and removing the work clothes are all part of the closing process and reflect taking responsibility while separating from the creative process - the creator goes back to his own clothes and prepares to return to the outside world.
Initial Encounters
Working with two primary colors (red, blue, yellow) and mixing them. Creating many shades.
Adding white to two colors.
Adding black to two colors.
Working with only black and white, creating at least twelve shades of gray.
Choosing a specific shade and using eight different brushes, from the thinnest to the thickest. Experimenting with different brush movements and the brush’s possibilities on the paper. What do different hand movements create? Work on a 35X50 cm sheet of paper with the widest brush. When the color dries, switch to the smaller-sized brush, then to the next in size, and so on.
Working with a dry brush, very little color and no water. Working in layers on a 35X50 or 35X25 cm. sheet of paper.
Different degrees of dilution result in shades that range from transparent to opaque.
Painting the same composition on three sheets of paper, but in three different ways: the first composition with patches of color, the second with lines and the third with dots.
Painting the same composition on two sheets of paper, in two different shades: one in shades of red and the other in shades of blue.
The text is based on The Spirit of Matter / A Database Handbook for Therapists, Artists, and Educators Nona Orbach and Lilach Galkin, 1997
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