Can you imagine your world without art? Or without colours? It wouldn't be a nice picture!
Luckily back in 1978, Mr Henry Malouf, shared the same vision and decided to write the first page of our history. Today, The Art Scene is one of Australia’s largest suppliers of art materials and custom frames and still offers old fashioned service and advice. With over 17,000 product lines, we stock all major brands including: Winsor and Newton, Canson, Matisse, Atelier, Art Spectrum, Chromacryl, Staedtler, Lascaux, Arches, Saunders Waterford, Faber-Castell and Schmincke. We also have a huge range of instructional books and DVDs on fine art and craft. We have personalised in store service for custom framing and cater for a variety of framing needs including: professional artists’ galleries, corporate jerseys, memorabilia, needlework and tapestries.
How it all started.....
The Art Scene was established in 1978 when its founder Mr Henry Malouf (a dedicated hobby artist) decided he could no longer remain retired at the early age of 50. With the help of his wife Evelyn and 4 children Paul, Julie, Kim and Greg who one by one gave up their careers to work in the business, they now have a thriving custom picture framing and art materials business.
Having been on the opposite end of the counter for some years he knew what he wanted as an artist namely professional help in selecting the right picture frame to enhance and compliment his artwork and of course as is the case for most “struggling artists”, help in keeping the costs down.
Through word of mouth a substantial portion of the professional and semi professional artists in New South Wales heard of this quality picture framer which not only could offer a fresh look to the way pictures were framed but halved framing costs which were a substantial portion of the cost of a painting.
Another innovation by Henry was to make The Art Scene a one stop shop for artists and in 1980 he introduced a full range of artist materials into the store (still in its present site today but expanding each year down the street) so that all the artists shopping needs from frames, paints brushes and canvases could be done at the one time and in the one place.
Until this day very little has needed to be done in the way of advertising thanks to customer recommendation and the business now employs over 35 people in its retail and wholesale operations.
Our achievements....
The Art Scene has substantially grown its mail order business and now sells Australia wide with significant orders being exported to countries such as England, USA and Asia.
In 1995 The Art Scene completed its first 240-page full colour catalogue to showcase over 13,000 product lines and provide artists with a reference to all art materials available in Australia. This has been updated and republished on a regular basis. Our latest catalogue remains one of the leading sources of Art Supplies in Australia today!
In 2001, we launched our first online shopping site. We have just revamped the website to provide you with an enriching experience and we hope you will enjoy shopping with us!
Our aim is to develop the depth of talent in Australia so that we can become a leading nation in Art.
In 2008, when the Charles Sturt University closed the doors on its workshop programme that had been running for 38 years, The Art Scene picked up the pieces and continued running of this very important Art school in Bathurst which is held twice a year in January and July. This school provides tuition to 500 students a year and also provides about 14 full art scholarships each year.
Our values.....
We are proud to carry a range of FSC certified products. The Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) promotes responsible management of the world’s forests. This is accomplished through development of voluntary, internationally recognized forest management standards. FSC is the most widely recognized global certification program. The FSC certification program supports biodiversity, protection and conservation of forests, ensures long term timber supplies, protects stream sizes, while assuring consideration of long term human benefits. FSC wood products are available in selected pencils, stretched canvases and pads. We are bringing on board many other products that will be available in the future that participate in this program.
We buy products from suppliers who comply with CITES regulations. For example our brushes use wood from timber plantations that are re-grown and are approved for use by CITES ensuring that the Orangutan habitat is protected. CITES (the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora) is an international agreement between governments. Its aim is to ensure that international trade in specimens of wild animals and plants does not threaten their survival and it accords varying degrees of protection to more than 33,000 species of animals and plants, whether they are traded as live specimens, fur coats or dried herbs.
We are here for you.....
At The Art Scene we continually update and expand our product range with new lines to satisfy your creative desires at affordable prices!
To make your shopping experience as enjoyable as possible, we invite you to browse our extensive range of art materials and craft supplies. Shop with ease online or contact us directly for friendly, expert answers to any questions you have about our art supplies and craft materials. There is always something to fit every budget and artistic spirit.
Thank you for visiting our site and we look forward to your suggestions as to how we can serve you better.
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