British artists' suppliers, 1650-1950

A selective directory, to be revised and expanded regulary, 1st edition June 2006, 2nd edition May 2008 (*entry revised, **new entry)
Contributions are welcome, to Jacob Simon at jsimon@npg.org.uk.
Resources and bibliography

W. Frank Gadsby Ltd, see J. Bryce Smith Ltd

*John David Galliard, 12 Noel St, London 1779, 227 Piccadilly 1783-1785, 14 Barton St and Marsham St, Westminster 1790, Ann Galliard, Poland St 1794. Suppliers of Swiss crayons, watercolours and brushes.

John David Galliard, watercolour maker, was in business at 12 Noel St at the time he took out an insurance policy on 9 January 1779, covering his utensils and stock for £250 (Guildhall Library: Records of Sun Fire Office, policy registers). As D. Galliard, 227 Piccadilly, he advertised his Swiss crayons in 1783, describing them as improved by Messrs Pache and Galliard, who were instructed by the late inventor, Bernard Stoupan (Public Advertiser 7 June 1783; see also Bonhote). His trade card, with added date 1784, provides further details of these crayons, 'Removed from Noel Street/ GALLIARD'S/ ORIGINAL SWISS CRAYONS,/ For which the Society for the Encouragement of/ Arts, Manufacturers, & Commerce, granted a Bounty to/ PACHE AND GALLIARD;/ are made & sold by him, at No. 227, opposite to the/ Black Bear Inn, Piccadilly;/ and nowhere else in the British Dominions/ Where the Nobility Gentry and Artists may be supplied/ An Allowance to those who purchase for Exportation./ Sell also Water Colours & Pencils./ Longmate sculpsit Noel Street' (Banks coll. 89.26, repr. Kosek 1998).

Galliard was listed as John David Galliard in 1784 (Bailey's British directory) and as David Galliard in 1790 (Wakefield's directory). He may be the Jean David Galliard who married Ann Hilditch at St James's Westminster in 1777 (IGI). Another member of the Galliard family had a dance academy at 9 Noel St, close to John David Galliard's premises.

Edward Goodwin, 53 Rathbone Place, London 1813, see William Strachan

Mrs Penelope Gore, see Thomas J. Morris

Grace and Yallop, see Yallop and Grace

*Edward Graeff, 56 Beaumont St, Portland Place, London 1847, 13 Douro Cottages, Wellington Road, St John's Wood 1854-1856, 20 Devonshire Square, Southwark 1871. Artists' lay figure maker.

Edward Jordan Graeff (1812-78) was the son of John George Graeff and his wife Mary (IGI, Free BMD). He was christened at old St Pancras Church in 1812. He inherited property from his mother at her death in 1830 (PCC wills) and his name occurs in connection with property in Finchley in 1835 and 1847 (A2A, catalogue refs ACC/0170 and 0351). He appeared before the Court for Insolvent Debtors in 1843, being described as late one of the sworn clerks of the Court of Chancery (London Gazette 1 August 1843, 17 September 1844).

Graeff advertised in 1854, giving his address but not his name, 'Life-size Adult Lay Figures, stuffed and covered in cotton, from £6 6s; the best that can be made, covered in silk, wig, universal pedestal, &c., complete, £11...' (The Times 3 May 1854; further advertisements on 15 January and 1 October 1855). In the 1871 census he was listed as Edward Graiff, lay figure maker, age 59, born Euston Square, with three children.

*Sebastiano ('Bassanio') Grandi, 6 Brownlow St, Long Acre, London, 1806. Colour merchant.

In discussing Joshua Reynolds's models with James Northcote, William Hazlitt described Grandi as the Italian colour grinder who sat to poor effect for King Henry VI in Reynolds's Death of Cardinal Beaufort (1788-9), leading Henry Fuseli to joke that 'Grandi never held up his head after Sir Joshua painted him in his Cardinal Beaufort' (William Hazlitt, Conversations of James Northcote, Esq., R.A., 1830, p.174).

Grandi was active in London by 1789, it would seem, at least until 1806, and perhaps as late as 1822. He sold crayons to Joseph Farington, 1796, and laid grounds for him, 1798 and 1802 (Farington vol.3, p.1009, vol.5, p.1752). Grandi offered to instruct Royal Academicians in the Venetian process, 1797 (Farington vol.3, pp.811, 841, 930, 850, 920). Farington noted in his diary Grandi's approach to the Society of Arts for support for his colours in 1806 (Farington vol.7, p.2721). This approach resulted in the award of the Society's Silver Medal for colours and materials for painting and for a preparation of grounds on panels for painters; he also submitted a method for purifying oils for the use of painters (Society of Arts, Transactions vol.24, 1806, pp.85-92, examined by Suzanna Walker; see also Carlyle 2001 p.33). Various artists provided certificates in favour of this award, namely William Beechey, Richard Cosway, Joseph Farington, Thomas Lawrence, P.J. de Loutherbourg, James Northcote, John Opie, Richard Paye, Isaac Pocock, Martin Archer Shee and Benjamin West.

Grandi was described by George Field (qv) as 'a most ignorant Italian quack in Colours, absorbent grounds, and Vehicles. A Mountebank and droll' (Carlyle 2001 p.39 n.7), and by John Cawse in 1822 as 'an Italian colour-grinder and maker'; Cawse also described Grandi's Venetian ground (Carlyle 2001 p.167).

Daniel Green by 1834-1839, Green & Constable 1840 until 1852 or later. At 5 King William St, London Bridge, London 1834-1837, 36 King William St 1838-1852. Furnishing ironmonger.

Green & Constable advertised as selling Silas Bentley's porcelain-lustre varnish for paintings, with testimonials from Martin Archer Shee, Abraham Cooper, Ramsay Richard Reinagle, C.R. Leslie, William Etty and J.D. Harding (The Art-Union March 1845 p.87). The business had an account with Roberson, 1845-52 (Woodcock 1997).

Green & Stone 1927-1932, Green & Stone Ltd from 1932. At 258a King's Road SW3 1928-1939, 259 Kings Road from 1940 onwards. Artists' materials suppliers and picture framemakers.

The Green & Stone business was established in 1927, shortly before Chenil Ltd (qv) stopped trading. It is said to have been based within the Chenil Gallery at first, before setting up at 258a King's Road, where Alfred Green and his son Alfie initially ran the shop primarily as a picture framing business, with only a small section of art materials. The business advertised exhibition frames and artists' materials (The Artist March 1934). Rodney Baldwin, the present owner, first set foot in the store as trainee manager, 1972, purchasing the business from the Greens, 1978 (source: website history of firm at www.greenandstone.com).

Green & Stone's distinctive canvas stamp within the device of an artist's palette can be found on Arnold Mason's Elinor Glyn, 1942 (National Portrait Gallery). Anthony Gross obtained his paper and watercolour pigments from the shop (see Robert E. Wynne-Jones, A Historical Investigation into the Watercolour Paper and Pigments used by Official and Unofficial British War Artists during the Second World War, IIC conference poster, 2002).

Griffith and Wikey, see John Wikey

Griffiths, London, 1797. Colourman.

Said to be George Romney's main supplier by 1797 (David A. Cross, A Striking Likeness: The Life of George Romney, Ashgate Publishing, 2000, p.83) but otherwise untraced.

Robert Griffiths, 7 Portpool Lane, Gray's Inn Road, London EC by 1892-1901 as showcard framemaker (previously listed elsewhere), 5-7 Portpool Lane 1902 as wedge frame maker, 26-31 Eyre Street Hill, Hatton Garden EC1 1903-1937, apparently renumbered 1937/8, 3-11 Eyre Street Hill 1938-1952.

This business advertised that it had been established in 1860 (The Artist September 1939 p.vii). It was listed from 1902 as selling stretcher frames for artists' canvas. It advertised wedged frames for artists' canvases and all artists' joinery (Art Review 1935). In 1896, Patrick Shea (qv), artists' colourman, wrote of the difficulty in being sure of obtaining stretchers from Griffiths, presumably Robert Griffiths, when in a hurry, stating that 'There is only Griffiths in the field'.

Lewis Guerre, London, 1780s, 1790s. Copperplate maker and metalwork for engravers. A candidate for the next edition of this Directory. Contact Jacob Simon at jsimon@npg.org.uk.

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