Watercolour Gouache
COMIC BOOK HERO IN WATERCOLOURS
US illustrator BEN HARVEY walks you through his painting process that combines traditional mediums with a digital sketch to create a portrait of the Rocketeer.
Original character © The Rocketeer Trust
When I first decided to take my craft seriously I knew I needed to branch out into the world of colour theory. This terrified me. Growing up, I was trained primarily in drawingOccasionally, I was exposed to various painting mediums, but came away thinking they were too cumbersome to handle. Finally, I decided that watercolour would be the most approachable of the lot to get into. The paints last longer than acrylic or oil and it’s far more portable when doing plein air work.
Watercolour behaves like no other medium. It can be unforgiving at times while yielding effects and textures that are wholly unique.Maintaining a careful balance of water and pigment is the most difficult aspect to master. Persistence is key, along with curbing the urge to oversaturate your brush.
MATERIALS
WATERCOLOR
■ Mix of Van Gough
■ Kuretake Gansai Watercolor Sets
GOUACHE
■ Holbein Artists Gouache
BRUSHES
■ Escoda Perla synthetic brushes 12, 8, 2/0, 1, 0 Liner brush
■ Princeton Art wash brush #1
PAPER
■ Frabiano Artistico 300lb (640gsm)Watercolor board
PEN
■ Uni-Ball Signo White Gel Pen
SOFTWARE
■ Clip Studio Paint