Spot the Difference
The difference between watercolour, acrylic and gouache.
Gouache, acrylic, and watercolour each have unique characteristics, but how would you know which one to use and when? Understanding these differences should help you get the best uses, and ideal styles for your artistic vision. Let’s break it down!
Gouache
Characteristics: Gouache is often described as an opaque watercolour and often includes a white pigment or chalk to increase opacity. It dries to a matte finish and, much like watercolour, can be reactivated with water. However, it doesn’t quite have the same quality once reactivated, so its best to keep your paints moist with a spritz of water instead. The major difference from watercolour is that it provides solid, vibrant colours with little transparency.
Best Used For: Gouache is ideal for artists who require both the fluidity of watercolour and the opacity of acrylic. It’s commonly used in illustration, design work, and for creating detailed, precise images. Gouache is also popular for creating flat areas of colour with sharp edges, making it an excellent choice for graphic scenes and characters.
Ideal Styles: Gouache is well-suited for works that require fine detail and solid colour coverage. It’s a favourite among illustrators, particularly for children's books, where the vibrant, matte colours can bring scenes to life. Gouache also excels in creating stylized, flat compositions, and is frequently used in design-oriented artwork, such as fashion illustration and editorial work.
Acrylic
Characteristics: Acrylic paints are made from pigments in an acrylic polymer emulsion, making them fast-drying, water-soluble when wet, but water-resistant when dry. They have a high pigment providing vibrant, solid colours. Acrylics can be used straight from the tube for a thick, impasto effect, or can be watered down for a more watercolour-like appearance.
Best Used For: They are incredibly versatile and can be used on a variety of surfaces, including canvas, wood, metal, and even glass. Great for working in layers, as they dry quickly and allow for the easy addition of multiple new layers without disturbing the underlying ones. Great for teaming with other mediums for mixed-media work plus they can be combined with other materials like gels, pastes, and even sand to create texture.
Ideal Styles: They’re super versatile so cater for a wide range of artistic styles, from abstract to realism. Best for work where their bold colours and textures can be emphasized. If you are a fan of working on larger scale projects they’re great as their quick drying time allows for faster completion.
Watercolour
Characteristics: Watercolour paints come in lots of different forms including pan, tubes and powders. They are known for their transparency and delicate, flowing quality and made from pigments suspended in a water-soluble binder. They’re often applied in thin washes, allowing light to pass through the layers of paint and reflect off the surface of the paper, which gives them their delicate appearance.
Best Used For: This medium is versatile and well-suited for capturing lots of topics like nature, landscapes, and portraits. They are suited for artists who enjoy working slowly, allowing each layer building up to their final piece. They can easily be reactivated with water and blended on the paper. Watercolours are also favoured for their portability, making them a popular choice for artists who like to get out to create.
Ideal Styles: Watercolour is ideal for creating soft, atmospheric effects, making it a go-to medium for impressionistic and realistic styles. Techniques include delicate gradations of colour, subtle textures, and fluid movements, which work particularly well in capturing light, shadows, and reflections. However, they can be challenging to control, requiring practice and skill to master.So when it comes down to choosing which paint you want to use, choosing the right medium can make a significant difference in how your artwork turns out.
Watercolour’s transparency and fluidity make it perfect for delicate, light-filled scenes. Acrylic’s versatility and fast-drying nature allow for bold, textured, and layered compositions. Gouache, with its rich opacity and smooth finish, is ideal for detailed, vibrant illustrations and designs. Which one do you prefer?
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