Meet Michael Harding, founder of Michael Harding Handmade Artists Oil Colours (UK). Michael will be demonstrating his beautiful handmade oil paints and mediums 2pm – 5pm Wednesday 19th February at Chapman & Bailey Artshop, Melbourne.  FREE 3hr demonstration. Click here to book. Book early as it is sure to fill quickly!

My paints are made by hand, using techniques which date back to the days of the Old Masters. There is a very simple reason for this painstaking process. As an artist and painter I wanted to create colours that were true and vibrant, and paint which was beautiful and durable.

The greater the pigment content of a paint the greater the resistance it has to fading. Nearly all manufacturers use various fillers to extend the volume of the oil paint. It may increase profits but it compromises on quality. I totally refuse to do this. Why make something exceptional and then dilute it?

I will not claim that my paints will turn you into a great painter, but I can promise they will have a profound effect on your work. Your colours will be stronger and richer, and you will find the texture of the paint incomparable. You will love working with them.

Try them. You will be amazed

Michael Harding

About Michael Harding:

I started making oil colours back in 1982 while I was studying Fine Art. I had always been inspired by Rembrandt’s paintings in the National Gallery and I wanted to try and recreate his paint effects and glorious colours in my own work

Not surprisingly, after a number of aborted attempts, I realised something was missing. It wasn’t just his genius that I lacked but the actual materials I was using. They would not behave in the same way as the paint in his work, and the colours had a totally different appearance.

My quest began. I was determined to get what I needed – oil paint that was of the same quality and consistency as that used by the Old Masters. After a number of months doing intensive research I turned my flat into a small oil paint factory.

There were various experiments before I hit on the right consistency and then gradually the hard work began to pay off, I produced my first paints and suddenly found myself in business. Almost immediately I started supplying the Royal College of Art and the Victoria and Albert Museum. Word spread and demand for my paint grew at an alarming rate.

I still make my own paint and am still excited by the process, the materials and the colours. Artists now write to me from all over the world and we discuss colours, techniques, problems and recipes. That dialogue is very important to me. I have deliberately added their comments and emails to my site so that you can share their views, their ideas and the valuable information that has been generated. Their testimonials say more about my paint than I ever could, and besides I’d rather you heard it from “the horse’s mouth”!

Michael Harding, London 2005

More info:

http://www.michaelharding.co.uk/index.php