Rocks at Cannon Beach , OR
Gouache John Wells Gouache John Wells

Rocks at Cannon Beach , OR

“Rocks at Cannon Beach, OR in Gouache” is a 6 x 9in. gouache painting on Arches Hot Press Watercolor Paper. I painted this from a photo I took last time Beth and I were there. It was breathtakingly beautiful walking on the beach there at sunset, and the photo doesn't even come close to capturing the feeling. With this painting I tried to get a little bit of the sense of magic that I felt. I’m continuing to learn how to use gouache, and with this one I feel like I’m starting to get a handle on it. My goal with this was to start experimenting with using more drawing with the paint.

Read More
Boats at Le Conner, WA
Gouache John Wells Gouache John Wells

Boats at Le Conner, WA

“Boats at Le Conor, WA in Gouache” is a 6 x 9in. gouache painting. I painted this from a photo I took last time Beth and I were there. Le Conner, WA sit along the Swinish Channel, which connects Skagit Bay to the south and Padilla Bay to the north. It’s one of only three outlets from Skagit Bay to the greater Puget Sound. It’s a smallest of the three, and because of that it has a pretty substantial current. Beth and I took a long weekend and stayed in Le Conner, and the reference photo was from a nice walk we took at sunset along the waterfront where there are a lot of boats docked.

This is more practice as I learn and get more familiar with using gouache.

Read More
Samish Bay
Gouache John Wells Gouache John Wells

Samish Bay

“Samish Bay in Gouache” is a 6 x 9in. gouache. I painted this from a photo I took last time Beth and I were there.This is a view from a lagoon along Chuckanut Drive, a beautiful scenic drive just south of Bellingham, WA. I’m pretty happy with how this one turned out. The colors are vibrant and the brushwork is clean and impressionistic.

Read More
Old Car, Upper West Side
Gouache John Wells Gouache John Wells

Old Car, Upper West Side

I'm trying to get better with gouache paint, which is similar to watercolor except that is has so much pigment in it that it is opaque instead of transparent. But being opaque means that it behaves more like oil or acrylic paint than watercolor. Here is a 9 x 12 painting on watercolor paper where I used the gouache with similar techniques that I use for oils. It is from a photo I took on the Upper West Side in New York.

Read More
Couple at the Yellow Wall
Gouache John Wells Gouache John Wells

Couple at the Yellow Wall

Here’s a little gouache painting I did Yesterday. This is a couple I saw while Beth and I were sitting at an outdoor table having a nice lunch in the Pike Place Market in Seattle. I’m pretty new to gouache and still trying to understand how to use it. So practice, practice, practice. :)

Read More
Fountain on Harvard Avenue East in Gouache
Gouache, Video John Wells Gouache, Video John Wells

Fountain on Harvard Avenue East in Gouache

This is a process video of a painting in gouache inspired by Harvard Ave. E., which is a beautiful street in the Harvard-Belmont Landmark District located in the Capitol Hill neighborhood of Seattle. This historic area was built in the early twentieth century by the wealthy and important families at the time. Today, the area is magical with its huge trees and lush gardens. The gouache painting was done on Arches hot press watercolor paper with Daniel Smith Gouache .

Read More