If you've ever stood in front of a wall of oil paint tubes wondering why one costs $18 and another costs $48, you're not alone. It's one of the questions we get asked most often at Duthy Street — and the honest answer is that the difference is real, significant and worth understanding before you spend money.
Here's a plain English breakdown of the four professional oil paint brands we stock and who each one suits.
Blockx — Belgian, buttery, extraordinary
Blockx has been hand-milling oil paints in Belgium since 1865 and nothing about that process has changed much since. They use an unusually high pigment load and cold-pressed linseed oil, which gives the paint a rich, buttery consistency that artists either fall completely in love with or find takes some getting used to. Colours are deeply saturated, lightfastness is excellent across the range, and a little goes a long way. If you've been using mid-range paints and want to understand what the fuss is about, try one Blockx tube in a colour you use constantly. The difference tends to be immediately obvious.
Old Holland — Dutch, intense, uncompromising
Old Holland is possibly the most pigment-dense oil paint available anywhere. The colours are almost startlingly intense straight from the tube and the paint is quite stiff — more so than Blockx — which suits painters who work with a palette knife or build heavy impasto. It's a demanding paint in the sense that it rewards a confident hand rather than tentative mark-making. Professional painters who have used Old Holland for years tend to be extremely loyal to it. It's also expensive, but the pigment load means you genuinely use less.
Langridge — Australian made, exceptional mediums
Langridge is made in Melbourne and is genuinely one of the great success stories of Australian art materials manufacturing. The oil colours themselves are excellent — well-priced for professional grade, good pigment load, consistent quality. But where Langridge really distinguishes itself is in their mediums range — linseed oils, alkyds, resins and varnishes that are among the best available anywhere. Many painters who use other brands for their paint exclusively use Langridge for their mediums. Supporting an Australian manufacturer at this quality level also just feels right.
Winsor & Newton Professional — reliable, accessible, proven
Winsor & Newton's professional range (not the Winton student range) has been a benchmark for working artists for over 180 years. It's not as intensely pigmented as Blockx or Old Holland and it doesn't have the cult following of Langridge, but it's consistent, widely available, well documented and trusted. For artists who want a complete professional range at a slightly more accessible price point, W&N Professional is a genuinely solid choice. It's also the easiest to find tutorials and colour mixing guides for online, which matters when you're learning.
So which one should you buy?
If you're moving up from student grade for the first time — Winsor & Newton Professional or Langridge. Both represent a significant step up without the sticker shock of Blockx or Old Holland.
If you want the best buttery consistency and colour saturation available — Blockx.
If you want maximum pigment intensity and paint with a palette knife — Old Holland.
If you want excellent Australian-made paint and the best mediums in the game — Langridge.
All four are available at Duthy Street in store at Unley and online with Australia-wide delivery.