by Aleida v.
Old Holland paints began production in 1664. I visited the factory in Driebergen a few years ago. They were very informative and showed me around the factory. There is some machinery for milling pigment but a lot of the work is still done by hand. They made the point that they do not use any of the pigments that are used in the formulation of paints produced in China and preserve the traditions of manufacture. They also noted that even the material the tubes are made of is specifically used with the artist in mind - that for artists there is a tactile element to squeezing the paint from the tube.
I’ve been using Old Holland paints since my student days at the Royal Academy of Art in Amsterdam (Rijksakademie van beeldende kunsten) through the 1970s. I still have some tubes of paint from that time. (Two are still soft.)
This product has a smooth texture. The colour is intense and holds body with good coverage.