Comprehensive, fully illustrated step-by-step guide to three popular painting media - oil, acrylic and gouache. Practical exercises cover all the basics of each technique from mixing and learning about paints to teaching specific painting skills. Over 20 intensive projects each photographed step-by-step and accompanied by comprehensive instructions from a well-known, award-winning author. Learning to paint using oils, acrylics and gouache requires training in specific painting skills. The Practical Encyclopedia of Acrylics, Oils and Gouache is an ideal introduction to all three skills for beginners and is comprehensive enough to include exercises and projects that will challenge a more experienced artist. Getting Started discusses the materials and equipment required and suggests a starter palette for those about to invest in their first set of paints. This chapter clearly demonstrates how to use different painting tools, mix, blend and dilute different paints and how to prepare a canvas. There are practical exercises that show how to apply paint such as wet into wet with gouache, impasto and scumbling with acrylics and glazing with oils. Painting Projects includes 20 beautiful artworks ranging from landscapes to representations of people, still lifes and abstract canvases that are truly inspirational. Specially commissioned from leading artists, a range of styles of working and differing perspectives are included. These projects are illustrated step-by-step, showing how the canvas should look at every stage or application.