Gouache Workshop for Oatley 101 Society of Artists

Sunday 25th March turned out to be a magic Autumn day.  The artists arrived to set up for the workshop.  They had all wanted to learn how to paint a possum in gouache.  I selected a photograph of a glorious female possum from the Atherton Tablelands.  These beautiful animals have a rich almost red orange under colour in their fur.

The focus of the workshop was twofold –

1. to paint a possum with character and a thick fur coat.

2. to learn about gouache and some of the techniques of application.

Once the picture was sketched in we masked the areas we wanted to keep clear of wash.  Choosing whatever colours each wanted we put in a loose wash and dropped in other colours.  It was allowed to flow and dry.  The next step was to peel off the masking and get onto the undercoats of colour.  Darks on the branch and red orange on large areas of the possum.  Initially it is very bright however with the careful layering of burnt umber and yellow ochre the shape begins to happen.

We laughed and chatted and painted and by the end of the day had covered a great deal. The participants went away wanting more workshops and determined to get into painting with gouache in a big way. Each of the participants painted a very different painting and it was wonderful to see the range of styles as we went through the process.  We will do this again!

 

 

 

 

My Workshop Possum

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