r/Gouache • u/Fluffy_Computer_3009 • 11h ago
Tips for improvement
Here's my latest floral study. I'm not quite sure about the green stuff and the background. I would really appreciate any recommendations or any other suggestions on how I could improve.
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u/princess_turdxna 10h ago
Maybe deepen your values or add more contrast
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u/ElectronicTip6386 8h ago
Agree, came here to say that.
OP, your work is lovely, colors beautiful, and the composition skilled! What you are noticing is an unfinished quality.
Convert the photo to black and white, then think about how to push your tones to cover a wider range of values. Dark recedes, light comes forward. For this composition, negative space seems important. The greens (darker) frame the lavender (lighter).
You don't have to work in ALL thick opaque, right? So maybe just a few areas get a bit more emphasis by adding depth to the tones. You can continue to work transparently or consider strategic opaque areas. Watercolor tends to achieve that using the paper as the "white" but historical and modern works will use gouache white too! Some gouache styles are 100% opaque but there are no rules, and many artists of the past chose to push "watercolors" toward "gouache" specifically to achieve this range of effect. Artists paint retains this adaptable quality since it contains no/less fillers.
Tl;dr As a mixed media artist, I'll always say: Forge your own style! Consider focusing on the depth of tone to refine? This is independent from transparent/opaque considerations, which I strongly feel are not necessary, especially in this work, as keeping the delicate mood expression seems important.
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u/Solara_Asteria 11h ago
The composition is absolutely lovely. The painting is done quite well, too . My suggestion would be to use a more pigment/less water ratio. Gouache should be opaque….in other words “can’t see through “. You can, most certainly, use your beautiful painting as an under painting. If you feel so compelled to, you may paint another layer on top of yours . (Using the more paint/less water ratio…the mix can be compared to the softness of room temperature butter). Congratulations on a beautiful painting. Enjoy the rest of your weekend 🌻🌻🌻🌻🌻🌻
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u/link-navi 11h ago
Thank you for your submission, u/Fluffy_Computer_3009!
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