“Since 1972 I have produced three to five gouaches a day. I have principles connected with this new medium:

1. Never rub out or attempt to erase. Work round it if you have made a mistake. Make of your mistakes a strength rather than a weakness.

2. Wait for it. That is , if you don’t get a clear message, do nothing.

3. If you have a full brush and you have made a mark, do not think that you have to use the paint on your brush – wash it out.

4.As in life, it is not so much what you put in but what you leave out that counts.

5. Paint as if you were painting a wall (Bissiere).

6. No colour stands alone. They are all influenced by each other. This is when the dicey part comes in. I mean the balancing act.

7. Most pictures can be pulled round. If you run into head winds, tear it up.

8. Don’t drink and smoke so much & lay off the nudes. Nice, but too easy a gambit.”

Roger Hilton, from The Figured Language of Thought by Andrew Lambirth, published by Thames and Hudson, 2007.