Sketching in gouache

Gouache is a marvellous medium for doing quick sketches. I often use it when working on portrait commissions and wish to present a series of ideas . In a previous blog, I showed a portrait of Tony Langford, Managing Director of John Smedley Ltd. (2003-9)
This was only arrived at after various other alternatives had been considered.

Whilst it was great fun to paint , this was not really a portrait suitable for the Company Boardroom.
Tony is also a passionate sailor, so I was taken on board his motor launch and given a trip along the Orwell. Fortunately, it was a calm day as I am no seafarer! This voyage resulted in the following sketch.

One of the previous Chairmen, however, also had a nautical theme as background, so this alternative was rejected.
Finally, we decided on a Cambridge setting as Tony grew up there,went to University there and now lives there. Hence the idea of having his old College, Clare, as the backdrop. A couple of alternatives were considered

Also

This second version was chosen as the design for the finished portrait. Whilst indicating the Cambridge connection the pose was also intentionally relaxed and casual. As such it was a good foil to previous portraits now hanging in the John Smedley Boardroom.

The finished portrait.

“Tony Langford, Chairman, John Smedley Ltd. ( 2003-9)
oils 38″x 30″
The advantages of gouache as a sketching medium.
It is water based and dries instantly but remains soluble if you wish to work back into it. You can paint with a thick impasto or using a wash technique. It is opaque so you can paint light over dark . As such it is a very forgiving medium. It is much underrated and is well worth experimenting with if you’ve never tried it before.

In a previous blog, I demonstrated pen/ink/wash as a medium. This illustration, which I did for a magazine called Child Education employs the same technique. It is infinitely more complex with over a hundred figures around the giant Gulliver.

All of this required a huge amount of planning. Every figure and group of figures, all drawn from imagination, had to be carefully drawn in, and masked out with masking fluid. I needed to do this so that I was then free to apply large areas of watercolour washes for grass and sky. When these were dry, the masking fluid was removed and the blank figures redrawn and coloured.
In certain areas such as the trees and the giant’s shoes I applied body colour.i.e.opaque gouache. This allows one to get a stronger depth of tone.
This illustration was great fun to do as it involved a huge amount of preparatory research. It is clear that I was deeply influenced by 17th century Dutch painting and the work of Breughel in particular!

How to create a pen/ink/wash drawing 4

I have now added transparent washes of watercolour to the original drawing. These are done in successive layers with the previous one allowed to dry before the next is applied. This allows the luminosity and freshness of the watercolour to be retained. Having done this, I found that certain areas of the drawing had to be strengthened with pen/ink. e.g. the figures, the shadows under the eaves, the chimney stacks against the sky.

Pen/ink/wash is a marvellous medium for sketching en plein air. Few materials are required to be transported and one can sit quite unobtrusively drawing away without the usual crowds the sight of an easel can attract. It is ideal for rapid sketches, but its intricacy and detail can also be used to great effect in more highly finished work.

5 TOP DRAWING AND PAINTING TIPS
Vary the thickness of one’s line.
When cross hatching , change the angle of the pen stroke very gradually.
Never cross hatch at right angles.
Try to keep the watercolour washes fresh.
Use transparent rather than opaque colours.