Kuretake Gansai Tambi Watercolor No.52 HOOKER'S GREEN

Hooker's Green (No. 52) is a deep, rich green from Kuretake's Gansai Tambi series – hand-crafted Japanese watercolour paints based on pigments, distinguished by their creamy-soft consistency and powerful colour strength. The individual pan can be used independently or seamlessly integrated into an existing Gansai Tambi palette. The colour is based on pigments PY55 and PG7 – a combination that gives Hooker's Green its characteristic natural green character, threaded through with a yellowish undertone.

Features

• Pigment base PY55 + PG7: The pigment Phthalocyanine Green (PG7) provides depth and luminosity; PY55 shifts the tone towards warm, yellowish-green – typical of the classic Hooker's Green as known in botanical illustration and natural history painting.
• Opaque to transparent: With minimal water and rich consistency, the colour sits opaquely on paper – similar to gouache. More water dilutes it to luminous, transparent glazes. Both working techniques are possible with a single pan.
• Creamy-soft surface: The hand-crafted pan dissolves easily with a damp brush, without hard scrubbing. The consistency is silky-uniform, neither grainy nor dry.
• Light-fast at pigment-rich application: Gansai Tambi colours are pigment-based and light-resistant, provided dilution is not extreme – the more diluted, the lower the light-fastness.
• Large pan format (48 × 28 mm): The generous size enables broad brush strokes and loading larger areas – without constantly reaching for the edge of a small half-pan.
• Slightly glossy drying film: When dry, Hooker's Green leaves a slightly silky sheen – a typical characteristic of Gansai Tambi that gives illustrations a fresh, vibrant appearance.
• Available as individual pan: As a single pan, ideal for replacing exhausted colours in existing Gansai Tambi sets.

Use & Tips

• Botanical illustration & nature sketches: Hooker's Green is a foundation colour in botanical painting – deep enough for shadows, yellowish enough for fresh foliage. With plenty of water, it becomes a delicate light green for new shoots; with little water, a rich, almost impenetrable dark green for shadows.
• Sumi-e and ink painting: The original Gansai tradition – large Japanese brushes, swift strokes on rice paper – is equally ideal for this pan. The colour responds fluidly to quick brush movements and dries with pleasant depth.
• Wet-on-dry for control: On pre-dried paper, Hooker's Green maintains sharp edges and an even, vibrant colour wash. For soft transitions, brisk working is recommended before the colour sets.
• Mixing: PG7 is a classic mixing partner for virtually all blue and yellow tones. Hooker's Green mixes easily with other Gansai Tambi colours on the palette surface – for example with Indigo (No. 67) for a darker olive green, or with Lemon Yellow (No. 40) for a livelier yellow-green.
• Light and dark paper: Due to its opacity, Hooker's Green works well on toned or dark paper – for highlights with white pigment or as an underpainting.
• Calligraphy & lettering: Applied with a water brush, the pan is suitable for coloured calligraphy and hand lettering – the silken-glossy drying film makes letters on light paper particularly striking.

For Watercolour Enthusiasts

Gansai Tambi colours behave differently from classical Western watercolours: they adhere more strongly to the paper surface and penetrate less deeply into the paper. This means they remain relatively easy to reactivate even after drying – which requires different planning for layering techniques than with transparent watercolours. For the pigment combination PY55 + PG7 in Hooker's Green, this specifically means: multi-layer working is possible, but the lower layer can reactivate easily. Those wishing to work with opaque white or light glazes over it should allow the lower layer to dry completely and apply a controlled, brisk brush stroke over it. The ACMI-certified, water-based pigment is non-toxic.

Technical Specifications