X
MOV File
Online Collections

gouache


Details
Term Type

Art & Architecture Thesaurus

Preferred Term

gouache

Details

A matte, opaque watercolor paint typically using gum arabic, gum senegal, or dextrin as a binder. Gouache paints use opaque pigments rather than the transparent pigments used in watercolor paints. Chalk and other white fillers may be added to some colors. Gouache was used for miniature paintings in the 16th-18th centuries, for decorative paintings on interior walls, and for printing wall paper patterns. Poster paints are an inexpensive version of gouache. The term originally had a different meaning, referring to oil applied on top of tempera painting.

Variations

color, body

watercolor, opaque

opaque watercolor

body color

body colour

opaque watercolour

pintura al gouache

Guasch

guazzo

guache

Broader Term

watercolor

Related Events
Related People
Related Literature
Related Terms
Related Artworks
Media
IMLS logoNEA logoNEH logo

The Portland Art Museum’s Online Collections site is brought to you thanks to support provided by the State of Oregon through its second Culture, History, Arts, Movies, and Preservation funding program and generous awards from the Institute of Museum and Library Services, the National Endowment for the Humanities, and the National Endowment for the Arts.