Daler Rowney, colour experts for over 200 years!
Focus on Rowney.
In 1783, Richard and Thomas Rowney founded a perfumery in central London, where they also sold wigs. This business quickly became fruitless and obsolete as soon as King George IV took off his wig.
As a result, the Rowney brothers focused on making colours for artists. This project was far more successful. The quality of the Rowney colours quickly seduced Constable and Turner. They discovered their products at the great Crystal Palace exhibition in 1851. Their knowledge of chemistry allowed them to create a range of thin pigments mixed with drier oils for the making of oil paints.
The Georges Rowney colours factory was later born in Holborn Hill in London. They further research helped to improve the development of oil and watercolour paints. These new specialists could no longer be ignored.
Always looking for innovation, Rowney was the first European colour maker to launch an acrylic paint in 1963: Cryla.
The enthusiasm of the United Kingdom’s artists was significant in the 60s and 70s and this new material announced the arrival of the famous Pop Art movement. Peter Blake and Bridget Riley, masters of the English Pop Art, were true addicts of the Cryla paint.
In 1969, the Georges Rowney Limited company left central London in order to establish itself in Bracknell. Where the company remains today. The management of the Rowney colours factory had been passed from generation to generation. Tom Rowney was then running the company. He stayed in charge for 30 years, and could not find a successor. The Morgan Crucible group purchased Georges Rowney Limited and ran the company until 1983. This year also marks the bicentenary year of the colour maker.
Focus on Daler.
In 1983, the Daler Board Company bought the Georges Rowney Limited. Daler was created in 1945 by Terry Daler. Terry was returning from a German prison camp. Daler was already part of the group since 1946.
Terry started the company with his brother Ken and his brother-in-law Arthur as sign painters. Following the end of WWII the company was thriving as signs, painted out to confuse the Germans now needed to be repainted.
The 3 partners managed among other things to develop the famous red and yellow A series drawing pad and produce a range of artists’ supports.
Daler-Rowney: a colourful success!
The Daler-Rowney company was a success in the United Kingdom and quickly became the leader in the artists’ materials market. Its success rapidly became international. The company planted their flag in the United States in 1988.
The Daler-Rowney brand, is present in more than 150 countries with famous ranges such as:
- System 3,
- Georgian,
- Aquafine…
Daler-Rowney has gained the trust of artists all around the world.
The value of the brand is based on 3 ideas:
- “Be Inspired”,
- “Be Passionate”,
- and “Be Creative”.
The goal is to inspire artists while emphasizing the legacy and the reputation of Daler-Rowney. Main focus is on innovation and quality of the products.
To mark their 225th anniversary and in order to reinforce this new strategy, the entire Daler-Rowney team contributed to the creation of a giant work of art. Each member received a white canvas, paint, brushes, and a part of a Julian Dustin abstract work to recreate.
The giant work of art composed of all the canvases will be on show in the head office in Bracknell as well as in the factories in Wareham, the Dominican Republic and New Jersey.
Find all the materials from Daler-Rowney in-store and online at www.greatart.co.uk/daler-rowney.
Find out more about Cryla Artists’ Acrylic here!
GreatArt – your art superstore
Art supplies, ideas and advice for all techniques.
GreatArt offers you art supplies for all techniques from:
- traditional fine art painting,
- drawing,
- sculpture
- printmaking,
- graphic art,
- illustration,
- airbrushing,
- model making…
We offer an extensive range of stretched canvas and display products for exhibition, all the art supplies required to create your own bespoke canvases, as well as custom framing and mounting services from GreatArt Store. You’ll also find hundreds of articles and tutorials to browse in the online magazine.
ldakers
In the mid 1980s when I worked in an art shop a little old lady came in and asked me, “Do you sell ‘Winsor and Neuter’ and ‘Rowntree Pastilles’ “. I was quite amused and just said, “Yes!” Rowney Pastels were the top of the range in those days and from 30p each upward. I still have my 144 assorted wooden box set plus many more colours besides. I prize them greatly. It always seems a pity to start using such a lovely set and not keep them pristine just to look at and drool over. We were invited to visit their factory at Bracknell in the 1980s and were taken out to lunch by the managers where I had octopus for the first time. I thank Rowney for introducing me to delicacy! The company were great fun and our rep Terry was a nice man to know. The factory was clean and well organised and the production of paints etc. was to the highest standard. Amongst their range of colours they made the best Yellow Ochre, Cobalt Blue, Permanent Rose and Coerulem Blue [they were in fact the first to makes useful this]. Sadly, many of the old colours from many of the manufacturers of artists materials no longer make the Lead Whites and Chromes [a well prepared and washed Chrome Yellows and Oranges could match their own against the Cadmiums, wrote Prof. Laurie], Genuine Vermilion and even the humble Rowney Brown Pink [which was not permanent but such an easy colour to mix greens in outdoor quick sketches for the studio]. I have a stock of their watercolours in whole pans in my favourite colours which is no longer available. I always remember their beautiful advert on the back of the Artist magazine then which always made me want to reach for my brushes. I must be one of the few that still have a gorgeous nos.14 Dianne Kolinsky Sable Brush which has been my companion for 35 years. Their hog brush range I preferred to any other. When a stock came into the shop I used to pick out the best for myself. Their short and long filberts were especially good. Their products are the very best and I have fond remembrances of visiting their factory! I sent some reps. powder colour samples from the 1930s etc. for their museum as a way of thank you!