The story of Gamblin Artists Colors Company is well known. Painter Robert Gamblin was so committed to the quality of oil paint he was using in his own paintings that he started making his own paint in his garage. This was not a casual undertaking. Robert devoted the entire first year solely to perfecting the formulas for white paint! His efforts were particularly focused on removing the most toxic elements from the oil painter's studio. Gamblin was the first to develop a replacement for lead white paint, and his Gamsol solvent sets the industry standard for permissible exposure level. Over 25 years after his first forays into color making, Robert Gamblin's oil paint and mediums are some of the best known, and best selling, ranges at Wet Paint.
Lesser known, perhaps, are Gamblin's contributions to artists' education. The Gamblin color chart is divided into mineral and organic colors; a separation that clearly divides the warmer, opaque colors from the predominantly cooler, transparent ones. This deceptively simple format allows the artist to make informed color choices based on their needs. A review of the Gamblin color system has prompted more than one Wet Paint employee to remark that they had just learned more about color in ten minutes than in four years of art school!
Since so much has been written about Gamblin (the man and the company) over the years, Pete Cole, President of Gamblin Artists Colors Co, wanted to share a few anecdotes that you may not have heard: "Gamblin's commitment to studio safety and environmental sustainability takes many forms," says Mr. Cole. "Last year, Gamblin gave away over 15,000 tubes of Torrit Grey, our unique oil color made from the artists' pigment reclaimed from our filtration system. Also, our employees log over 25, 000 miles annually on bicycle or public transportation, rather than driving to work."
Out of Robert's passion for painting and paint making has grown a responsible, progressive company that honors the past while continually breaking new ground.
