Rose is a fluorescent-pigment colour, and its pigment list is a long one: BV11:1, BV7, BV15, BR1, SY135, SY116 and AB83, all described by Holbein as Fluorescent Pigment. There is no titanium white in it, and the Munsell notation of 6.0RP 3.5/12.5 shows why that matters. A value of 3.5 is genuinely deep, while a chroma of 12.5 keeps it saturated, so this is a dark, glowing magenta-rose rather than a pastel.

A deep fluorescent is an unusual thing to have on the palette and it is worth having. Rose gives you the intensity of a fluorescent at a value dark enough to sit as a shadow note under Pink or Cosmos Pink, which is a trick you cannot pull off with a pale bright. Illustrators use it for night-lit skin, lit signage, petals with depth and anything that should look faintly lit from within. It works hard in mixed media too, over dried acrylic grounds or under coloured pencil. Keep it near full strength on a white ground for the best of it.

What Makes This Colour Special

Pigment, lightfastness and series as published by Holbein. Holbein does not publish an opacity rating for individual colours; the range as a whole is described by Holbein as opaque.

Acrylic Gouache, Not Traditional Gouache

Think of acrylic gouache as the flat-finish member of the acrylic family. The pigment load is high, the binder is an acrylic emulsion, and the surface dries without gloss. Holbein Acrylic Gouache dries to a matte opaque finish and is water resistant once dry, so it does not reactivate with water like traditional gouache. That matters for a deep colour like Rose, which can be laid down, dried, and then worked over with lighter notes on top. Soft rounds and mops from our range of watercolour brushes suit it well.

Why Holbein Acrylic Gouache Is in Serious Studios

• Genuinely opaque. Holbein describes the range simply as an opaque acrylic paint. It covers, including over darker colour, which is the whole point of reaching for gouache rather than watercolour.
• Velvety matte, no sheen. Holbein describes the colour as opaque, intense, smooth and velvety. It dries flat, which is why it photographs and scans without glare.
• Water resistant once dry, so you can layer. Holbein’s own wording, and the reason the range exists. A dry layer will take another one over the top without lifting.
• The colour you mix is the colour you get. Holbein states it does not shift in colour tone from wet to dried colour. Anyone who has watched a perfect grey dry into a different grey will appreciate that.
• Built to use straight from the tube. Holbein says it is specifically designed to be used directly from the tube and will dry to even, uniform paint layers.
• Works on more than paper. Holbein lists paper, canvas, cloth, stone, wood, leather, plexiglass and concrete, with excellent adhesion, and full compatibility with all acrylic mediums.

Getting the Most Out of This Tube

Straight from the tube is the default. This is what Holbein designed it for, and it is where you get those even, flat, uniform layers. Add a little water to loosen it, but go easy: very diluted washes can dry streaky across a large flat area, so build coverage in thin even coats rather than flooding it on.

Watch the palette, not the clock. Holbein gives an open time of roughly 10 to 30 minutes and notes the drying time is much like ordinary watercolour. The practical consequence is that paint left sitting on the palette will go off and will not come back, so squeeze out small amounts as you need them.

It plays well with acrylic mediums. Holbein states the range is compatible with all acrylic mediums, so you can change the body or extend the working time if you want to. Soft synthetic brushes suit it, since they hold enough paint to lay a flat area without dragging.

Questions About Holbein Rose