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The Traditional Craft of the Artists’ Colourman - by A J Ludlow Colours

This week’s blog is from one of our lovely exhibitors - A J Ludlow Colours.

A J Ludlow’s mission is to serve Artists as modern day colourmen providing a traditional high-quality watercolours and service to match.

So, A J Ludlow Colours…. what is a “colourman”?

"The painting “An Artists’ Colourman’s Workshop” by J M W Turner often springs to mind. It shows some aspects of paint making used around 1807, the craft of the artists’ colourman. As well as the lone colourman, grinding pigment using a hand muller as in Turner’s painting, companies manufacturing and supplying artist’s materials, from the late Eighteenth Century onward, were also known as Artists’ Colourmen. Many have supplied materials to the famous artists of the time and their pigment preparations and painting colours are the basis of these great master pieces and their skill and craft ensures that we can still view them today. Their role in art, is therefore of fundamental importance, but sadly their craftsmanship is often overlooked, along with the part they have played.

In the vein of an Artists’ Colourman, we do produce bespoke watercolour and are very much grounding ourselves around this traditional model and craft. The traditional Artists’ Colourman produced artists’ colours to the best of his abilities, producing only one grade suitable for the professional artist, but available for all practitioners regardless of their level of skill. We do the same, specialising our expertise in the manufacture of professional quality watercolours.

We are a UK manufacturer of fine-art professional watercolours, based in Royston, Hertfordshire. The company was established in 2018, but we launched our 48 pure pigmented watercolours at the Spring Fair in 2019 and exhibited at Patchings Art Festival and the Ilkley Art Show, the same year. We are now looking forward to attending the Living Crafts Fair at Hatfield House and showcasing our exquisite watercolours.

Painting in watercolour is quintessentially British and we are proud to be able to offer a top-quality British made fine-art material to British watercolourists. Each one of our watercolours is made from the highest quality raw materials and purest pigments. Our craft does follow in the footsteps of the Artists’ Colourman, offering traditional fine-art materials, but with all the benefits of today’s scientific advancement – “a fusion of art and science”."

Find out more about A J Ludlow Colours at https://www.ajludlow.co.uk/

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