Primary Black is the neutral anchor of the primary set. Holbein lists a single pigment, PBk7, given as Carbon, and the Munsell notation is recorded as V 1.8, a value with no hue or chroma attached to it. That is exactly what you would expect of a true neutral: no colour bias to record, and a value of 1.8 sitting very low on the scale, so a deep black without a warm or cool lean. Three stars for lightfastness.

A neutral black is the most useful black to own, because it darkens without dragging a colour sideways. In a printing-style primary palette it is the fourth leg, and with Primary White it gives you an even, honest grey scale to work from. Illustrators use it for line work, flat silhouettes, comic blacks and text, and it is the ground of choice underneath the metallics in this batch, since mica needs something dark to read against. A whisper of it will deepen any colour, so measure it out carefully.

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

Pigment, acrylic emulsion, water. That is the whole formula, and it produces a paint that behaves like gouache while you work and like acrylic afterwards. 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 Primary Black that permanence is the point, since a black ground or a black line has to survive whatever you paint over it next. Fine line work asks for a good point, so have a look at our watercolour brushes.

Jelly gouache comes in little pots of soft, sweet-smelling paint that stays rewettable, which is lovely for sketchbooks and hopeless for anything that needs to survive a second layer. This is a professional acrylic gouache in a tube: dense, matte, and permanent on the page once dry. Different tools for genuinely different jobs.

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 Primary Black