Japanese Watercolor Paints

Japanese watercolor paints, known as gansai, are traditional water-based pigments bound with natural glue and honey, prized for their rich, reactivatable color and smooth flow on paper. This collection brings together Boku-Undo gansai and sumi ink watercolors made in Nara, Japan, in sets ranging from 6 to 24 colors. Each pan rewets instantly with a wet brush, making them ideal for calligraphy, sumi-e, nihonga, illustration, and everyday watercolor painting.

Boku-Undo has crafted pigments in Nara since 1854. Gansai differ from Western watercolors in their bold, luminous opacity and the way each color lifts and blends with water alone. Choose a compact 6-color set for travel and lettering, or an 18 to 24-color set for full-range painting. Pair them with our Japanese paint brushes for a complete painting kit.