Craft Focus - Page number 48 - June/July 2021 (Issue 85)

48 The paper professionals Nuala Henry, UK marketing manager at Hahnemühle UK, guides us through the history of this impressive artist paper manufacturer Tell us a little bit about the history behind Hahnemühle UK Ltd. Who started the company and when? Hahnemühle UK was established in 1985 when Hahnemühle – the oldest artist paper manufacturer in Germany – started its global sales and distribution channel. FineArt Paper and Digital FineArt papers from our renowned brand are now available in more than 130 countries. Hahnemühle also has subsidiaries in France, USA, Singapore and China. Where are you now located and where are your products made? Hahnemühle is one of the oldest paper manufacturers in the world, established in 1584, producing the finest quality paper. We’ve been manufacturing in Dassel, Lower Saxony, Germany, near Hanover at the foot of the Solling mountains and this year we celebrate our 437 th year. Hahnemühle UK offices are located at St Mary’s Court near Norwich with a separate warehousing facility also based in Norwich. Tell us a bit about the company name On 27 th February, 1584 the Duke of Brunswick granted the right to build a papermill to paper making craftsman Merten Spieß. From there the ‘Reylingehäusische Papiermühle’ – the first papermill in the surroundings of the mid mountains ‘Solling’ arose. In 1886, Carl Hahne become the owner and gave the mill the today well-known name Hahnemühle (Mill of the Rooster). The rooster is used as the watermark in our precious papers and the founding year is still visible in our logo. What company values do you hold? Inspiring people to get creative is one of our core values for generations as well as protecting what matters. For more than four centuries, we’ve been developing exceptional paper that stands the test of time. We inspire artists all over the world and are a reliable partner providing outstanding quality paper components for Life Science applications, industry and research. As one of Germany’s oldest paper manufacturers, we prioritise quality over quantity and provide consistency which is deeply anchored in our rich tradition. Tell us about your product range. What do you specialise in? Our portfolio comprises of artist papers in a variety of formats for all kinds of painting, drawing and sketching. All our papers are highly lightfast and manufactured to the highest standards. For photographers and digital artists, we invented the Digital FineArt papers with a one-of-a-kind coating specially developed for archival inkjet printing. We’re now inspiring writing connoisseurs with premium notebooks and luxury writing instruments. A less known but important part of our business is the production of consumables for Life Science applications and industrial specialist paper. For example, we manufacture PH litmus paper for the life sciences industry. What’s your bestselling product? Some of our best-selling products are within our Digital Fine Art range. As the inventors of Digital Fine Art paper, our ranges have a one-of-a-kind surface coating that optimises colour performance of the print whilst maximising the longevity of the artwork. For FineArt purposes, having archival quality paper is very important to artists and collectors as these artworks are expected to last for many years without degradation. P R O T E C T W H A T M A T T E R S G R E E N R O O S T E R