Blue Violet is unusual in that it is a single fluorescent pigment, BV1, which Holbein lists simply as Fluorescent Pigment. Munsell notation of 9.0PB 2.5/12.5 puts it at the blue end of the violet range, deep at a value of 2.5, and highly saturated at a chroma of 12.5. It looks like a dense indigo violet that seems to hold more light than a colour that dark reasonably should.

Illustrators use this where a scene needs to be dark and coloured at once: night streets, stage lighting, deep water, interiors lit by a single lamp. It blocks in as a flat field with real presence and then takes lighter accents cleanly on top once dry, which is how most animation and comic colourists work. Being a single pigment it stays consistent tube to tube and page to page, useful in serial work. Pair it with a pale yellow for the sharpest contrast in the range, or with a light grey when you want the violet to do the talking.

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

The short version: acrylic gouache is an opaque, matte, water-thinnable acrylic. Pigment is ground into an acrylic emulsion, which gives you the flat light-absorbing surface of gouache with a film that stays where you put it. 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. Blue Violet suits it well, since a dark field wants to be perfectly even. Soft rounds and mops from our range of watercolour brushes suit the paint nicely.

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 Blue Violet