A Spotlight on Artists' Materials Catalogue

If you are looking to build your collection of antique art materials and learn more about their provenance, look no further than artists' materials catalogues. They serve as the definitive guide to what the Artists’ Colourmen produced.

The 1850s saw an explosion in demand for fine art materials. In response, comprehensive inventories were created by Artists’ Colourmen to cater to the newly rich and the growing number of professional artists. Cheap softback catalogues with painting guides were produced in large numbers and distributed accordingly. At the time, a clever sales technique called the ‘One Shilling Handbooks on Art’ was employed. Customers could learn the basics of miniature or portrait painting and then be directed to the materials they needed for their new hobby. Professional artists were offered weighty tracts such as ‘Field's Chromatography’, which included pages featuring artist-quality pigments and large paintboxes.

Companies used various strategies to promote their products, including endorsements from famous artists and detailed explanations highlighting why their products were superior to those of their competitors. The catalogues were adorned with royal appointment crests and printed reproductions of prize medals won at international exhibitions.

Lechertier Barbe Catalogue

These catalogues are also works of art in themselves. The original books offer examples of the typefaces and design styles of the time. Lists of materials are accompanied by wonderful hand-drawn images, ensuring everything appears crisp and clean. The earliest booklets exude Victorian bombast, while those from the 1910s reveal a softer approach. In my personal collection, I have a beautiful Charles Roberson catalogue from this era. Its cover is adorned with art nouveau imagery surrounding a paint palette, brush, and portcrayon—the iconic tools of the trade.

Winsor & Newton Catalogue 1966

A common feature in every Winsor & Newton catalogue, along with others, was the inclusion of the company's establishment date—1832. One hundred and fifty years after its formation, it became desirable to highlight the brand's heritage alongside its scientific innovations. Unfortunately, many of the smaller artist colourmen, such as Rudolph Ackermann, Lechertier Barbe, Clifford Milburn & Co., and Elias Wolff & Son, had ceased trading, leaving only a few larger companies surviving.

Winsor & Newton Catalogue 1970s

J Bacon, The Theory of Colouring, 1866 published by G Rowney

Now, one hundred and fifty years later, these booklets are an important and increasingly rare part of art history. Due to their ephemeral nature, most were disposed of at the time or fell apart with use. Even rarer are the catalogues produced by smaller companies like Lechertier Barbe or Charles Roberson.

C Roberson Catalogue 1900s

By the 1950s, hand-drawn etchings had been replaced with photographs, but the inventories were just as extensive. In a post-photography but pre-computer age, painting and drawing remained beloved hobbies, with many architects, town planners, and product designers still creating sketches and plans by hand. Product lines were updated to reflect the discoveries in colour science, emphasising the permanence and quality of pigments. Trade secrets were revealed to assure customers that their products were superior. Winsor & Newton, for example, keenly stressed that "the careful testing of our colours has always gone hand in hand with colour manufacture". The larger catalogues featured lists of pigments and their composition, while the smaller pocket-sized catalogues provided more perfunctory information. Price lists were still included.

Winsor & Newton Catalogue 1992

So, what use can these catalogues be for today's artists? For collectors of vintage and antique art pieces, they can serve as a guide, pointing out product lines that may be worth investing in or new pieces to include in their practice. If you have a particular interest in colour science or historical pigments (now discontinued), the catalogues can help identify which colours were available and when they were sold. Or, like me, you might simply derive joy from slowly building your collection, adding interesting and rare catalogues over time.