5 Mediums That Pair Well With Gouache

As you probably already know, gouache is my medium of choice. I discovered it five years ago and haven’t looked back. While I think gouache is powerful enough to stand on its own, my favorite thing about it is how well it plays with others. It creates the perfect matte base to support other mediums.

There a dozens of mediums you can pair with gouache, but only five I use. I wanted to talk about these today, and provide examples of how I use them in my work.

Graphite Pencil

Are you surprised I started here? Graphite pencil is the most basic medium, yet it looks so lovely with gouache. I find it adds a sort of hand-crafted look to the clean lines of gouache. This is probably the medium I’ve been pairing with gouache the longest. I mainly use graphite pencil to overlay patters and line work on my paintings.

My favorite pencils to use are either these mechanical ones or super sharpened Dixon Tigonderogas.

In this painting, I used graphite pencil for the pattern on the glass vase.

In this painting, I used graphite pencil for the line work on the bottle/cap.

Micron Pens

A longtime favorite of many artists looking to add detail work to their art. What I like about these over regular pencil is that they don’t smear, and they create a cleaner line. However, I often use them in the same way I would use graphite pencil - for patterns and line work. While these pens come in colors, I like black the best, since it’s the most classic.

My favorite micron pens are these .005 black ones.

In this painting, I used micron pens for the stripes and tiles on the clay roofs.

In this painting, I used micron pens for the lines on sails of the ship, the nets, and the wood texture on the bottom of the boat.

Acrylics

This one may be a bit surprising, because acrylics look similar to gouache on paper. However, they give a more opaque, heavier finish than gouache. They also provide the opportunity to add thick textures to your paint. I know many artists who use both acrylic and gouache in their work. If you aren’t familiar with acrylics, they are not water soluble. Once they’re dry, that’s it. They also have a slight sheen to them when dry. My favorite way to use acrylics is to incorporate gold acrylic into my work, because I haven’t found a gold gouache that has the same effect.

A good brand for color acrylics is Winsor & Newton. My favorite brand of gold acrylics is Golden Acrylics.

In this painting, I used gold acrylic for the gold sky and grass.

In this painting, I used gold acrylic for the elevator shaft.

Colored Pencils

Colored pencils used to be my preferred medium. I’d use them on their own. Recently, I fell back in love. I now use them over gouache. I’ll mainly use them to create glowy or shadowy lighting effects. To me, they soften up the gouache, and add personality.

My favorite brand of colored pencils is, and has always been, Prismacolor.

In this painting, I used colored pencils for the taxicab light beam, and to create shading under the awning. I also added a little glow around the vertical “Chicago” sign.

Neocolor Pastels

I recently discovered these on my friend Emma Block’s instagram. They seem to be something many artists are loving when paired with gouache and watercolor. The cool thing is that they’re water soluble, but apply like oil pastels. You can choose to leave them raw, or add a little water to soften and blend. To me, these work similar to colored pencils. However, the water soluble effect is what sets them apart. Also, I find they are a more saturated than colored pencils.

I have this type of Neocolor Pastels.

In this painting, I used Neocolor Pastels to create the shadow variations in the sky and grass. I also used them for that hazy lighting effect around the stars in the sky.

Do you have another medium you like to use with gouache? Let us know in the comments below!