Below is a REVIEW of:
- the history of C Roberson & Co
- art materials by C Roberson & co
- art materials supplied by Robersons
- an absolutely amazing e-catalogue - with supplies from some of the oldest and most prestigious suppliers of art materials
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| Roberson Oil Colours |
An analysis of colours in tubes in Patrick Heron’s studio at his death showed 61 colours, out of 155, in 627 tubes, out of 790, from C. Roberson & Co Ltd, many from the mid-1960s
About C Roberson & Co
Charles Roberson & Co. were artists colourmen from 1820 until 1985 - and became one of the major firms of artists' suppliers.
The company prepared its own paints and manufactured a wide range of materials to recipes that were kept secret and actively protected. Some of these recipes are still used today.
- unusually they both manufacture and supply artists materials
- associated with some reputable retailers
- associated with many prominent artists
Among its customers were artists such as Turner, Whistler and Sargent, designers such as William Morris, William de Morgan and Walter Crane and the royal and famous including Queen Victoria, Lady Randolph Churchill and Winston Churchill.
History of C Roberson & Co
- Roberson was of the major artists’ suppliers of the 19th and early 20th centuries. The sequence of business names is
- Charles Roberson 1819-1828,
- Roberson & Miller 1828-1839,
- Charles Roberson 1840,
- Charles Roberson & Co 1840-1908,
- C. Roberson & Co Ltd 1908-1987.
- 1819: Charles Roberson set up at 51 Long Acre in 1820 - the premises had a history of art material suppliers - it had been used for the sale of brushes and colours since 1803, firstly by John Culbert (qv), then from 1814 by his apprentice, Henry Matley. One of his first customers was Sir Thomas Lawrence. The rationale was the area was home to a lot of artists who lived/worked there (JMW Turner was born a few streets away in Maiden Lane) and was also very near the Royal Academy of Arts which, at that time, was located in Somerset House just off The Strand. The company stayed in the Long Acre area until 1937.
In 1821 Lawrence began patronising the young Charles Roberson (1799-1876), ‘Colourman to Artists and hair pencil maker’ and successor to Henry Matley at 54 Long Acre. Initially, Lawrence purchased materials to the value of £4.3s.6d, including Italian Pink, Venetian Lake and Vermillion in one or two ounce quantities, Italian chalk totalling six ounces and Mountain Blue, that is Azurite, totalling 19 ounces (about 550 grams); of these the Venetian Lake was the most expensive pigment at 6s an ounce (see Appendix for full transcript).
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| Roberson & Miller’s trade sheet (detail), Materials for Drawing and Painting, c.1828-39. |
