Jack RichesonCasein The Shiva Series Underpainting with 37ml Tubes, Set of 6

I wanted to try casein paints because of the sketching potential so I bought these. Unlike watercolor you can paint opaquely, unlike gouache, the paint stays down once dried. unlike oil, there are no toxic substances needed to thin the paint or clean the brushes, unlike acrylic it doesn't smell like plastic and look like plastic. What was the surprise was that I started using them on rice paper for Japanese sumi-e and they turned out awesome for that. When used on rice paper half diluted with water, the paint glided off the brush beautifully and deposited with lots of lovely variations. My ONLY slight issue is that the line doesn't include a lemon yellow or a really true bluish purple so the range tends to be more warmer colors. The paint may also be a substitute for nihonga mineral pigments which are gorgeous but not readily available in the US. I think that they will be suitable for painting on almost any surface as well.

This paint is very similar to gouache, but is less likely to get picked up again with future layers after it completely dries. The colors are great, too. I obviously can’t test the lightfastness, but my research suggests they are artist quality in that respect. They were a good upgrade from my $5 gouache set; however, if I were new to painting, my $5 gouache set would work just as well as this. I like knowing my work won’t fade in time now that I am developing my skills as a “painter” (I say this lightly haha) plus, the colors are true pigments. If you have used high quality and low quality paints, I think you know what I mean. They are just truer to color and have more depth. Overall, these were fun to experiment with, and I plan to use them for plein air painting.

I love the consistency of these paints. I’m able to do a very easy under-painting with the set of colors included. I’ve used them with acrylics, watercolors, and gouache.

Like many of you, I found out about these from James Gurney. I use these with watercolor, gouache and acrylics. It behaves a little like gouache, but it creates a handy durable film after a while. I use it for illustration.

This is a great medium to work in. In the past I mostly worked with water color and a little gouache. These paints dry quickly with a matte finish and seal beautifully. The colors are smooth when freshly squeezed from the tube and the colors are rich and vibrant. They are also very easy to mix with each other and gouache. You won't be disappointed. I'm actually thinking about getting white and black just to complete this set.

Great set of paints and price (usually tubes go for $6-10 at my local art stores). Definitely has a unique smell... better than oil or acrylic. Different type of medium completely if you've never used this before. It is a mix between traditional gouache and cel-vinyl. Dries to a matte finish and can be reconstituted. You can water it down to a watercolor consistency as well :]

On and off for about 10 years, I have painted with Casein. Of the companies that make artist casein, Shiva is relatively easy to find, and for a long time was a quality product. It’s become a crap-shoot with quality control for Shiva, a recent purchase of Shiva Green, essentially Phthalo Green, was a waste of money and a bit of a disaster when I squeezed the tube and a huge amount of casein came out all over my other colors on the palette. What a mess, quite a few colors had to be scraped off. The casein binder separated from the pigment in the tube. The green slurry was followed by a thick plug of pigment. I’m not sure I’ll be buying anymore Shiva Casein colors due to quality issues.

LOVE these paints - buttery smooth and tons of pigment. Can work like watercolor or straight from the tube for super opaque.