He used colour for its expressive qualities rather than to just depict something. It is even more poignant that Matisse finished this vast, brightly coloured work of art which is nearly 3m x 3m the year before he died.

1906

De Vlaminck’s best known work is characterized by a bold usage of reds, oranges and yellows, with a preference for rolling landscapes and woodland scenes. André Derain, the co-founder of Fauvism, was a French artist whose paintings exhibit the writhing energetic lines and bright colors characteristic of the movement.

Throughout Matisse’s career, whether it was during his oil-painted works, his stripped-back sculptural pieces or in his final years of cut-outs, the consistent theme within the artist’s work is an appreciation of form and composition.

Matisse was primarily an oil painter, but he did some well-known bronze sculptures, and late in his career, when he could no longer paint, he worked in a medium that came to be known as “papiers decoupeés” (paper cut-outs).

Some of the Fauves were among the first avant-garde artists to collect and study African and Oceanic art, alongside other forms of non-Western and folk art, leading several Fauves toward the development of Cubism.

Henri Matisse created some of his best-known art in the final decade of his life, and he made it from the simplest materials: shapes cut from colorful sheets of paper. He described these “cut-out” works as “drawing with scissors,” and he used this technique for works of various sizes and subjects.

1. Durability. One major advantage of acrylic paint is that it tends to be more durable than gouache. Acrylic paint holds up better to light, can easily withstand dust, and is generally water resistant.

Have Fun Painting with Gouache Yet, unlike watercolors, it can be worked from dark to light and you can paint in white areas. Since it contains a lot of pigment, it is thick and opaque like acrylic paint.

Is Gouache Easier Than Watercolor? While watercolor is perhaps more well known, both gouache and watercolor are common beginner mediums. Unlike oil or acrylic paints, they leave more room for error, because if you are unhappy with your initial work, you can simply rewet the paint and rework it to your liking.

Gouache consists of colored pigments, a binder (often gum arabic) and water. It produces a velvety matte finish, in powerful shades. Because it is opaque, you can paint layer upon layer with it: Each shade remains quite separate from the previous one.