Artist demonstrations 2026
Catherine Hamilton
The Vibrant World of Gouache
Monday 17 August 1 pm – 3.15 pm
Cost $10 – includes afternoon tea. Open to non-members. No booking required.
Gouache Studies by Catherine Hamilton
Gouache offers a rich, deep finish and the ability to build bold, colourful layers.
It is an opaque, water-soluble painting medium that shares many working properties with watercolour, yet differs in its appearance and composition. Unlike transparent watercolour, gouache contains a higher concentration of pure pigment, a binding agent (usually gum Arabic), and an added inert white material such as chalk, which gives it a thicker texture and opaque finish. This allows artists to layer colours and achieve solid, vibrant coverage. Both watercolour and gouache can be used together in the same artwork, offering flexibility and a range of effects for creative expression.
The demonstration will incorporate some different ways to approach the painting, building up the layers of paint as well as using the paint more thickly. Catherine will demonstrate a range of techniques and methods while completing 2 small paintings.
About Catherine
Catherine is an established, professional, award-winning artist and tutor who lives on the Mornington Peninsula. She teaches in several media and subjects, creating confidence and inspiration in her Australian and overseas students.
Catherine is an experimental, innovative artist working in a range of media including acrylic, oils, gouache, pastel and particularly drawing in charcoal and natural pigments. She has an extensive knowledge of both colour and the media which she uses to her advantage in her work. Her paintings are often built up within several layers of glazed colour to create both depth and texture.
Catherine specialises in understanding colour, teaching colour mixing and pigment in her workshops and tours.
Catherine won the Kenneth Jacks drawing award AGRA in 2019 for her figurative work “Lost in New York “and an Honorary Mention for the same award in 2024 for her portrait “Words of Wisdom”.
Much of Catherine’s work is produced from recollections – recollections of experiences, emotional responses, and visual memory. Her walks along the coast are the stimulus for much of her work. Photography, observational sketches, and memory all become the reference points that contribute to the creation of my paintings which are ultimately her connection and her response to the subject.
Catherine Hamilton and Gouache Paintings
Julie Goldspink 
Annee Kelly
Tina Whiteley
Jan Prislin-Planinc drawing, Leoni Jenkin photo
Leoni Jenkin photo, Greg Allen artwork
Susan O'Brien
Ben Winspear, photo Leoni Jenkin
Rick Matear
Liz Turner
Janine Daddo
Paul Margocsy
Pamela Pretty
Leoni Jenkin