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British invention stretches the imagination
How artist Ben Haslam and his colleague Karl Hajda solved a 250 year old artists’ problem with their best selling invention the
‘Keba-artmate’.
The Keba-artmate is unique. It is the first reliable device in the history of art that enables an artist on location to instantly stretch paper, canvas or silk tight as a drum ready to work on.
Artist Ben Haslam and co designer Karl Hajda tell their remarkable story;
Ben explains: “Taught paper is crucial for controlling the effects of paint, especially with watercolour. When paper is wet it expands then wrinkles and buckles making it very difficult to paint on. The traditional stretching process of wetting, taping and gumming paper onto heavy drawing boards is time consuming. It takes a couple of hours and more often than not your inspiration has dried up long before the paper. It is also very unreliable and can be extremely frustrating returning ready to paint only to find that the paper has not stretched evenly!”
Ben and Karl believe their paper stretching artmate will become the accepted method for preparing painting and drawing surfaces.
“We decided to try and find a solution ourselves, to solve the problem once and for all. And we did! Our artmate does away with the need for lots of boards and sticky tapes, it is self-contained and simple. By only having to wet the back of the paper and tightening it with the winding key, you can start work immediately. Artists can easily replace one painting with another and work on them time after time on a super tight surface. The stretching method enhances the paper’s strength making it more durable while the colours become brighter because they dry more evenly. You can also switch media in an instant: remove the base and use the frame for canvas or silk painting. The artmate is constructed from aluminium and plastic making it light, sturdy and portable. It comes in three sizes which can be taken apart and refitted like a train set, making up to 10 different shapes”.
From idea to market
Karl remembers, “We began in 1998, working from a disused cowshed in Henshaw Village, up till all hours developing our ideas in sub-zero temperatures.”
By the new millennium, their wooden prototypes and models were ready, so they filed for patent and started looking for investors and developers.
Ben elaborates, “We got useful help and advice on putting our proposal together from the architect Gerry Hagon who was then running an IT outreach centre in Haltwhistle, South Tynedale. It was not long after that I was meeting with representatives from the biggest companies in the Art Materials business. It was pretty daunting”.
Ben, a professional artist, had worked as a materials demonstrator for some of the companies, making good contacts along the way. Even so, much time was wasted through naivety with this line of business.
“All the companies really liked the product and wanted to buy and distribute it, which was encouraging, but they did not want to invest time in developing and manufacturing the product in the UK, and that’s why we ended up going to Sweden”.
In 2001 Ben and Karl where introduced to the famous Swedish manufacturing company Keba AB by UK importer and manufacturer, Tollit and Harvey LTD. That same year the patent was granted, but it would still take a further 4 prototypes to perfect the superb finished product they have today.
Ben set up the company Tynedale Fine Art Products LTD in 2005 to help sell the artmate directly and through mail order and the internet.
“This year we have been helping to promote and market the artmate at the major trade fairs here and abroad and to artists directly. We have been selling as far a field as New Zealand and Iceland; sales are really starting to take off!
We are developing a network of artists around the country who use the product and can demonstrate its values, they get a good rate of commission based on their sales turnover. They don’t handle any stock, we deliver to the customer so it is kept easy for them. It works really well.
Keba are pursuing the world market and Ben and Karl have now come full circle as they are about to sign a major distribution deal with a leading UK company. Ben says, “This will ensure that the artmate is available in all art materials shops. Our dream right from the start
Ben and Karl’s advice to would-be inventors:
“As a starting point anybody with a good idea should first think realistically about the best size and type of the market, the UK for example. They should look at how long it will take to make any money from their idea before leaping in to spend thousands on European and international patents, especially on a product that could bring in a good income but not necessarily make them multi millionaires.
Think 10 years ahead before you see much money for your efforts. Most innovators think their product is worth more than it really is and consequently become over protective and suspicious of potential manufacturers and investors. Thinking that everyone is out to ‘rip you off’ is wrong! There has to be an element of trust when approaching companies. In the end everyone has their reputation to think of and it is important for inventors to communicate their idea clearly to investors.
One thing for certain is that the inventor almost always foots the intellectual property bill. And more often than not it is a small company that is willing to take the risk and has the imagination to move things forward and invest in your idea.”
In short: the long haul to market:
1998 Start: the first of over 20 prototypes and hours of market research
2000 Patent filed and non-disclosure agreements made up.
First meetings with major international companies.
Further meetings and developments of the prototypes.
2001First meeting with Keba Sweden
2002 4 further prototype designs with Keba
2003 Patent Granted First field test and further development
2004First extrusions of the current aluminium design profile.
Keba AB starts marketing artmate in the UK.
Total investment to date (including annual patents payments and manufacturing development) Over £45,000
End 2004 First UK sales by ‘Jackson’s Art Supplies’ mail order company
2005Tynedale Fine Art Products LTD established to sell artmate.
First Royalty payment. Meetings in Sweden with potential UK distributor
2006 You tube Videos launched
2007 A4 Keba Starter and Combo sets introduced
Adaptable Upgrade products introduced to the range
2008 Australia Wholesale handler
2008 Tynedale Fine Art Products Northumberland open its first high street store The Hallgate Galleries Hexham
2012 Spain Wholesale agreement
2014 Negotiations begin with North America Wholesalers
2015 Hallgate Gallery purchases it’s Freehold Hexham premises
Future: Ben and Karl continue promoting the Keba-artmate and develop other
new product ideas.
For further information contact please contact:
Ben Haslam Hallgate Galleries 22-24 Hallgate Northumberland NE46 1XD
Tel 01434 682 564 www.tyndalefineartproducts.co.uk