Titanium White is the workhorse. One pigment, PW6, which Holbein lists as Titanium Dioxide, four stars for lightfastness, and a Munsell value of 9.5 with no hue or chroma attached, which is the notation for a clean neutral white. It is also the white that appears inside dozens of other tubes in this range as the tinting component, so if you have used any of the pale colours you already know how it behaves in a mix.

Nine tubes out of ten, this is the white you want. It lightens without dulling, so a red tinted with it stays a pink rather than going chalky, and it is what turns any colour in the range into a full value ladder. Illustrators and designers use it neat for highlights, stars, rain, catchlights, corrections and knocked-back overpainting, and it thins for fine white line work over dried darks. It is also the practical white for underpainting and for reclaiming an area of board you want to start again on.

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

Acrylic gouache is pigment carried in an acrylic emulsion and formulated to lie flat rather than build texture. 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. For a white that is the headline benefit: a highlight painted over a dried dark stays clean instead of dragging the layer beneath it up into the brush. Thin with water for detail or use it straight from the tube for flats. Compare it with the rest of our gouache range.

Designer's gouache whites stay soluble, which is why a white line drawn over a dark can pick up the layer beneath it and quietly go grey. This one dries water resistant, so white over black stays white, and you can build up as many passes as the highlight actually needs.

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 Titanium White