A
few more ideas later and the company Vynol colour
was born. A revolution in acrylic paints had begun!
Starting small with a kitchen blender in a stable at
Sydney’s Kings Cross, the company grew and the name
changed to Vynol Derivan. Their non-
toxic products proved to be enormously
popular and the company quickly outgrew
its humble beginnings, setting up a factory
in Alexandria, Sydney and production
facilities in South Korea and Canada. Vynol
Derivan had come of age, and the name
was changed again to Derivan.
The ideas kept coming, and after
introducing the world’s first ‘student grade
acrylic’, Derivan created a range of non-
toxic screen inks and block inks as an
alternative to products containing toxic
solvents and harsh chemicals that were
primarily in use at the time. It then came
to Derivan’s attention that some of their
paints were being used to paint the faces of
children at fairs and school fetes. Although
non-toxic, these paints were not specifically
formulated for prolonged use on the skin,
so Derivan created another world-first:
Derivan Face and Body Paint.
Derivan always remains committed to
new product innovations, and some of
their recent breakthroughs include Derivan
Liquid Pencil, a unique fluid graphite
formula, and the Matisse Dry Mediums
range, which provides endless ways for
artists to create textural effects.
“It is solving our customers’ problems
and helping them remain at the forefront
of their endeavors that drives us” says
CEO Steven Patterson. Steve is a second
generation descendant from one of the two
original founding families that still own
this Australian company. “Derivan’s catch
phrase Inspire.Innovate.Create is as much a
company motto as it is what we aim to help
our customers achieve”.
Patterson is also quick to point out
that Derivan has very strong social and
environmental ethics, demonstrated in their innovative
factory in Rhodes, Sydney. Air conditioning has been
replaced by cross flow ventilation systems, lights are
controlled by movement sensors, luxe meters and timers.: ABOUT US
It started 50 years ago with a few mates chatting over a beer. They realized that
there was a need for safe non-toxic artist paint for use in schools. It may seem
an obvious idea now, but at the time art teachers had very little choice when it
came to child-safe paints.
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