GOLDEN Completes Purchase of Williamsburg Handmade Oil Colors

Williamsburg Handmade Oil Colors has made the move 30 miles north from one small upstate, New York town to another. On May 21st, Golden Artist Colors completed the purchase of the small manufacturer and is now producing the oil colors in the GOLDEN Custom Lab facilities within its original factory in New Berlin, N.Y.

Barbara Schindler, President of Golden Artist Colors, shared, "We are very excited to be making Williamsburg Oils. I'm delighted that we were able to offer positions in our company to all staff from Williamsburg. Retaining the staff responsible for producing quality Williamsburg Handmade Oil Colors was an important objective and we look forward to working together and gaining their valuable knowledge." The employees from Williamsburg will be joining GOLDEN, which recently became one of only about 4,000 majority employee-owned companies in the entire U.S.

According to Mark Golden, co-founder and CEO of Golden Artist Colors, "there was no question that eventually we would make oil colors here. In fact, for over 20 years, we have been making custom oil paints for artists requiring unique colors or materials." The main focus of GOLDEN for its 30 year history, however, has been the advancement of modern coatings for artists. Not only has it produced the widest range of acrylic coatings for professional artists, the company has also contributed significant research to modern art conservation. Moving forward it will be important that GOLDEN earns the trust of Williamsburg supporters by continuing the tradition of this unique, niche oil paint created over 25 years ago by the late Carl Plansky.

"This will be the critical work for us here," shared Jim Hayes, GOLDEN Technical Director and Chemist for over 23 years. "It is the intent of all of us at GOLDEN to be stewards of this legacy that was created by Carl. It is also our responsibility to assure the future legacy of artists' work using these paints; that these materials will continue to be of a quality that we can all be proud to maintain."

Sarah Sands, GOLDEN Supervisor of Technical Services for over eight years has a special relationship with Williamsburg Handmade Oils. "I started using Carl's paint while teaching at the New York Academy of Arts in 1992," said Sands. "I instantly fell in love with the material, it's almost impossible to describe the amazing tactile quality of the paints." By 1996 while teaching at Indiana University, Sarah contacted Carl about the possibility of working with the company. By that spring, Sarah had joined the firm, providing her skills as Business Manager and technical support consultant for artists. Sarah continued with Williamsburg until 2000. "We're so fortunate to have Sarah's background and knowledge, to be able to internalize and share company-wide, that passion for paint," said Hayes.

Artist and longtime friend of Carl's, as well as a regular visitor to the factory in East Meredith, Joe Concra, shared his concerns as GOLDEN takes on the reins of his cherished oil color line. "I hope that they will continue many of the unique qualities of the product that make these colors come to life. I'm encouraged to hear that GOLDEN will continue to make the Lead ground that I and many other artists find essential to painting in oils."

The history of Golden Artist Colors has roots in the 1930s as Mark's father and co-founder of Golden Artist Colors, Sam Golden, began working with his uncle, Leonard Bocour. Bocour Artist Colors began as a color shop making hand ground oil paints for artists in Manhattan. "As confident as we were that eventually we would be making an oil paint, we were also mindful that it would not be a GOLDEN Oil," shared Mark. "Our company is known for being an advocate for the relatively new Acrylic Medium. We sought a brand of professional oils that could stand on its own. We are thrilled to begin this journey with the many Williamsburg Oil advocates that have made this brand so successful."

For more information about Williamsburg Handmade Oil Colors, visit www.WilliamsburgOils.com.