Eric Silver, the sole proprietor of Blue Ridge Oil Colors, started out as an architectural student but switched to study painting after deciding his real passion lay with paint. His tinkering nature eventually led him to try hand-grinding paint with a glass muller. At first he made just twelve colors out of his basement but after being introduced to the professional paintmaker Robert Doak, Eric decided to become an apprentice and eventually an associate. Eric purchased a roller mill, began making and selling paint batches to Doak, getting valuable feedback and learning all aspects of the paintmaking business. Eventually Eric started his own company, Blue Ridge Oil Colors, in 2007.
Blue Ridge Oil Colors is a family-run business in Asheville NC in the Blue Ridge Mountains. The business is operated from a hillside shop where the family has worked for three generations. Everyone in the family plays an important role in the company and live by a code of “if it is worth doing, it is worth doing right”.
Blue Ridge sells its paint at a fair price due to keeping the overhead low and cutting out the middleman. Selling exclusively online has enabled Blue Ridge Oil Colors to reach artists around the globe who seek the best paint for their art. Blue Ridge believes artists shouldn’t have to sacrifice quality or limit their expression because of the material’s high cost.