Winsor & Newton Winton Oil Color, 200ml (6.75-oz) Tube, Titanium White

From the archives: the history of the metal paint tube

In the photo above, you can track the journey from the traditional bladders, to the syringe tube in 1840, and the tube cap introduced in 1904.

Artist Pierre-Auguste Renoir is quoted as saying: “Without paint in tubes there would have been… nothing of what the journalists were later to call Impressionists.” Winsor & Newton’s own William Winsor patented a particular iteration of the tube which has a significant impact on artists’ use of colour.

The metal paint tube was first invented by American oil painter John Goffe Rand as a way of transporting paints to use outside. The tubes were in fact syringes which were used to squeeze out paint and preserved the paint for a longer time, allowing artists increased flexibility and the possibility of a larger palette, as colours took longer to perish.

Upon hearing of this stunning innovation William Winsor immediately sought the patent, as Winsor & Newton were the only colourmen producing moist watercolour. Once the patent was secured, Winsor added one essential improvement to this design: the all-important screw cap. Thus the paint tube we know and love was born.