An inspirational book to get you started with gouache. In this book, gouache, a classic technique - used by Turner, Toulouse-Lautrec, Bonnard, Picasso, Gris, Braque, Matisse and Miro, among many others - often compared to watercolour, acquires a new dimension, as it offers a bolder approach to contemporary artists, illustrators and graphic designers. The author erases the boundaries between 'proper painting' and the spontaneous charm of watercolour, combining the advantages of both techniques. Diluted, gouache is almost like watercolor, but when used on its own, it can be applied in opaque layers with a matte surface reminiscent of pastels. Soluble in water, it is rather forgiving and allows for corrections and revisions, and finally, the fine grain of the pigment it contains makes detailed drawings possible. Award-winning illustrator and art teacher Aljoscha Blau shares his many years of experience, offers material recommendations, tips for swift success, suggestions on composition, the use of colour, tools and processes. And he spices it all up with his own illustrations, which are both an incentive and a feast for the eyes... AUTHOR: Aljoscha Blau is one of the most renowned illustrators in German-speaking countries. He was born in 1972 in Leningrad (now Saint Petersburg), USSR. Since earning his degree in illustration and graphic arts from HAW (Hamburg University of Applied Sciences, Hamburg, Germany), Blau has worked as an illustrator and author for German and international publishers. He has been honoured with numerous international awards, such as the German Design Award, the Bologna Ragazzi Award, Prix Figure Future, Troisdorfer Bilderbuchpreis (Troisdof City Illustrated Book Award), and the Deutscher Jugendliteraturpreis (German Youth Literature Award), and nominated for the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award. Blau teaches and conducts illustration and drawing workshops at various art academies in Germany, Denmark, Switzerland, Italy and France. He currently lives in Berlin. SELLING POINTS: . In this practical volume, budding artists will learn to use gouache in a new and contemporary way. . For creative people interested in drawing, painting and illustration, both professionals who want a change of perspective in their technique and amateurs who want to get started in the field. . The author is a renowned illustrator and prolific author and art teacher. 250 colour illustrations