Worth saying up front: there is no cobalt in it. Holbein's pigment line for Cobalt Green reads PG7 Polychloro Copper Phthalocyanine, PY3 Monoazo Pigment and PW6 titanium dioxide, so the name is describing a colour rather than a metal. Munsell gives 3.0G at value 5.0 with a chroma of 10.5, which is a high saturation figure for a colour that contains titanium white. Bright, mid-value and a true green.

A green with white in it that still reads bright is genuinely handy. Use it for painted surfaces, retro appliances, mid-century design work, foliage in strong light, and anywhere a flat green has to stay even across a large area. It layers over darker colour instead of vanishing, so animators and illustrators use it for the lit planes of anything green. Yellow Ochre or Beige mute it convincingly for landscape, and Ultramarine Blue carries it towards a soft teal without dulling it much at all.

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 still a newish category for a lot of people, so plainly. Holbein Acrylic Gouache dries to a matte, opaque finish and is water resistant once dry, so it does not reactivate with water the way traditional gouache does. That flat, sheen-free surface is the reason designers, animators and illustrators choose it for large areas of even colour. Holbein describes the range as an opaque acrylic paint compatible with all acrylic mediums. Browse the rest of the colours on our Holbein Acrylic Gouache page.

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 Cobalt Green