09/10/24
by Victoria Ritter
When Art and Diana Graham founded M. Graham & Co. in late 1992, they sought to develop a line of quality paints that were eco-friendly. Today, the company continues their tradition and keeps the environment as a focal point.
M. Graham offers 325 SKUs that includes high-solid acrylics, oil paints, watercolor and gouache. Although Art and Diana retired in 2016, the company utilizes the same processes and people to make its colors.
“They wanted to develop a line of colors that reflected the quality and value they sought as artists – they were both oil painters,” said Judy Rebitzke, business operations manager, adding the company doesn’t use any fillers or extenders in its paints. “We still use the same formulas that Art created. The process is exactly the same as he designed. We really haven’t changed anything.”
All you need in a nutshell
To make its oil paints, M. Graham forgoes the typical route of using solvents in favor of pure walnut oil sourced from English walnut trees grown in California. Its use of walnut oil eliminates the need for solvents, if an artist chooses.
“One of the main reasons Art chose to use walnut oil is because it does not yellow nearly as much as other oils,” Rebitzke said. “This is especially important for your white, yellow and blue colors.”
In addition to being a natural resource, walnut oil is nontoxic. Meanwhile, solvents, derived from petroleum, emit fumes and can be hard to dispose of. Rebitzke observed how artists who have moved away from oil painting because they developed a sensitivity to solvents, have returned to the medium because of the company’s walnut oil paints. “We aren’t saying that you can’t use solvents,” Rebitzke explained, “We understand that some techniques in oil painting can’t be achieved without the use of solvents. But if you are going to use them, please know how to use them safely.”
M. Graham not only uses walnut oil in its oil paints, but also sells pure walnut oil and walnut alkyd. The pure walnut oil can be used to thin paint and clean brushes. Walnut alkyd is an alcohol-based resin drying agent. Rebitzke recommends using one to three drops of alkyd per extruded inch to increase adhesion between the paint film, surface and layers, thus creating a more durable painting.
“Our walnut alkyd is nontoxic,” she added. “It contains no solvents and is an alternative to some of the other products out there.”
A sweet approach to painting
Rebitzke explained how all watercolors require some form of sugar. While some manufacturers favor a form of corn syrup, M. Graham uses another natural resource for its watercolor and gouache colors: Northwest blackberry honey.
“The honey acts as a natural humectant – it pulls moisture out of the air, leaving our paints more moist in the palette,” Rebitzke stated. “By using honey, we avoid artificial humectants and preservatives in our paint and are able to get more color and pigment into our paint.”
Honey has a handful of benefits for artists. The honey acts as a preservative and allows for “stronger, truer colors,” according to M. Graham’s website. Furthermore, the company’s watercolors are easy to dilute and are less likely to harden in the palette. By maintaining a “squishy, gumdrop texture” in the palette, artists don’t have to scrub the paint to get it on their brushes.
“We believe that every artist deserves the finest colors available, and we believe that’s our products,” Rebitzke said. “We make professional-grade artist colors. We select the finest pigments. We make color in small batches – about 650 tubes at a time – so we take time to custom-mill and mix every color to produce rich, vibrant, clean color.”
Reduce, reuse, recycle
M. Graham’s dedication to the environment applies both to its products and its manufacturing process which takes place entirely at its Hubbard, OR headquarters. Walnut oil is used to clean machines while washers use a closed water system; every other week, a company comes to replace and treat the used water. Employees use rags – instead of disposable wipes – to clean equipment. Another outside company washes the rags and returns clean batches.
Materials are recycled whenever possible. For example, discarded label backings and boxes are turned around into packing material. “It saves us from using single-use packing material,” Rebitzke said. “We just reuse all of the backing, and we always have an abundance sitting around.”
The company is also conservative with the packaging and materials it sends out to retailers. Its displays don’t require extra materials to construct and take up a small amount of space when set up. “Everything is small and simple,” Rebitzke stated.
Rebitzke encourages artists, when choosing painting supplies, to conduct research on what eco-friendly materials are available on the market and what works best for them. When it’s time to dispose of used containers, she recommends checking with local waste management organizations about recycling guidelines and how to properly dispose of materials.
Retailers looking to sell M. Graham’s range of paints can take advantage of the company’s resources, including brochures, posters, training sessions with store staff and samples for instructors and artists. “We are flexible and like to work with retailers individually and come up with programs that work for their particular need,” Rebitzke said.
An evergreen legacy
As nature is all about change, M. Graham is evolving and adjusting as the company navigates the post-pandemic market. It continues to distribute its paints through SLS Arts and its products can be found around the globe, with retailers in the U.S., Canada, Europe, U.K., Asia, Australia and New Zealand. Retailers can find M. Graham at local retailer shows and Creativation by Namta; the company plans to exhibit at the SLS Arts distributor show this fall and is returning to Creativeworld in Frankfurt, Germany next year.
In the meantime, there are a couple products catching customers’ attention. Last year’s most popular products were the Titanium White gouache, followed by Ultramarine Blue watercolor. Overall, watercolor is the most popular product category, closely followed by oil paints, according to Rebitzke.
There are a handful of new products as well. In 2023, M. Graham introduced a 10-color gouache set and white-only oil display. The company is working on more new items to debut in the coming months.
“Art Graham’s original philosophy for this line was to have the key basics,” Rebitzke said. “Our color selection is, more often than not, smaller than some our competitors’. Up until last year, we haven’t introduced any new items – especially during the pandemic – but we are working on some new things that we will be starting to introduce later this year.”
When asked about the importance of M. Graham’s environmental focus, Rebitzke explained it all comes down to the founders’ original vision. “It just goes back to the cornerstone of how Art and Diana built this company. From day one, they wanted a professional grade paint that was environmentally-friendly. It’s who we are still today.
“In my personal opinion, everybody needs to do their individual part to protect and preserve what we have.”
