History SENNELIER PIGMENTS ...
At the end of the 19th century, when he developed oil colours for his artist customers who would include immortal names like Cézanne, Gauguin and Picasso, Gustave Sennelier recognized the need for producing paints that only contained the highest quality pigments. In order to craft superior colours, Gustave verified that the origins of the pigments were from selected traditional sources, while precisely identifying their specific chemical characteristics. Ultimately, his great respect for these materials not only insured the permanence of works created with his paints, but also assured the production of an increasing array of unique colours of unsurpassed beauty and quality.
Since then, some pigments have disappeared, their natural resources depleted and others have been restricted due to their toxicity. But with recent innovations and research Sennelier offers a wide variety of synthetic pigments that perfectly match the performance of such ancient mineral pigments such as Lapis Lazuli and Cinnabar. Yet at the same time Sennelier still mines the earth for minerals and other natural elements from traditional sources - pigments like clays and iron oxides used in ochres and the preparation of “burnt” earth colours from calcified soil.
At the dawn of the 21st century, Sennelier still keeps a watchful eye on the pigments selected for its lines of artists’ quality oils, oil sticks, watercolours, soft pastels and oil pastels. These very same pigments are available to artists wishing to master the preparation of their own colours.