Williamsburg Handmade Oil Paints

Every Williamsburg Handmade Oil Paint color is carefully made in small batches to ensure the highest level of quality. Only the richest pigments are ground to enhance the natural beauty specific to each color.

In the mid 1980s Williamsburg founder and painter Carl Plansky began making paint for himself and his friends in the Williamsburg neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York. He had no intention of turning his passion into a business, but Williamsburg oil paints soon accumulated a following and then an international presence all while preserving the handmade integrity of the paint.

Carl had always been interested in pigments, oils, mediums, and old-world recipes, and enjoyed experimenting with traditional materials. Wherever he traveled he would research the history of painting and the relationship between painters and paint makers. In France he bought colors from the houses that had made paints for Monet, Matisse, and Cezanne then analyzed their paint to see how fine or coarse the grind was and to determine where they found their pigments and oils. With this same passion, he continued to search for the most beautiful raw materials in the world, importing pigments from dozens of countries so he could offer them to his fellow artists as paint and dry pigment.

The legacy and integrity of Carl's paint business survived his death in October of 2009. The team he built at Williamsburg Handmade Oil Colors has preserved the passion and creativity that Carl imparted under the leadership of Beverly Plansky, Carl's sister and business partner.

Williamsburg Handmade Oil Paints are available in 37 ml. tubes.