Art Supply Store Near Me in Hackney: Atlantis Art Materials

When creative professionals and studio artists require an art supply store near me with industrial scale and wholesale value, Atlantis Art Materials in East London is the essential stop. Founded in 1978 by artist Stuart Croll, Atlantis originally opened in a cavernous warehouse in Wapping, before serving generations of students in Whitechapel and eventually relocating to its purpose-built home at Unit 6, Bayford Street Industrial Centre in Hackney. Throughout nearly five decades of operation, Atlantis has retained its identity as a fiercely independent, artist-run enterprise focused on serving working painters and printmakers rather than hobbyists.

The high ceilings and wide aisles accommodate large carts loaded with reams of heavy rag sheets, long timber battens, and five-litre buckets of gesso. The atmosphere is pragmatic, energetic, and dedicated to the physical realities of large-scale artistic production, creating a workspace environment where serious painters feel immediately at home among pallets of bulk media.

Whether you are outfitting a newly leased studio in Dalston or preparing a solo gallery exhibition, the sheer volume of trade materials provides instant momentum for ambitious artistic ventures.

One of the primary attractions of Atlantis is its unmatched paper department, where archival sheets are kept flat in specialized plan chests rather than curled in cardboard bins. An individual sheet of Somerset Velvet 300gsm 100% cotton printmaking paper measuring 76 by 56 cm costs £3.75, making it an economical choice for intaglio etching, relief woodblock printing, and fine silkscreen editions. Somerset paper is mould-made in Somerset, England, using 100% cotton rag, delivering a soft, supple texture that picks up fine plate marks with crisp fidelity.

Watercolourists and printmakers can also purchase full reams of Italian Fabriano, French Arches, and Japanese Hosho papers with substantial bulk discounts. If you need to transport full-size drawings without creasing, an A1 clear archival presentation portfolio with steel spine ring mechanism sells for £34.00, protecting delicate work during gallery presentations and client reviews.

The paper section also stocks heavy conservation barrier boards, archival mountboards in neutral white and museum rag grades, and translucent tracing vellum rolls up to twenty metres in length for technical architectural drafting and botanical transfers. The warehouse staff assist customers in lifting full fifty-sheet cartons safely onto flatbed trolleys, ensuring that large paper orders remain pristine and uncreased during transport.

Printmaking inks from Cranfield Colours and Charbonnel sit beside heavy leather ink brayers, roller scrapers, and copper etching plates, making Atlantis a comprehensive destination for East London printmakers who operate private etching presses and shared print studios across the borough.

Large-scale painters benefit from Atlantis's focus on high-volume studio supplies. Instead of tiny 60ml tubes, the shelves feature industrial jars of Lascaux acrylics and Atlantis's own house-formulated mediums. A 500ml tub of Lascaux Studio Acrylic colour in Titanium White costs £16.95, delivering high opacity and non-yellowing durability for wall-sized canvas work without developing chalky surface brittleness over time.

Surface preparation is equally straightforward, with ready-stretched cotton and linen canvases available in bundles. A multi-pack of 5 heavyweight stretched cotton canvases measuring 16 by 20 inches costs £28.50, pre-primed with acid-free gesso and fitted with rigid pine stretchers. For protective finishes, a 1-litre tub of Atlantis archival matte acrylic varnish is priced at £13.20, drying crystal-clear without milky residue even in high humidity.

Sculptors and mixed-media artists can find casting plaster, dental stone, silicone mould compounds, and heavy steel palette knives built for shifting mounds of thick impasto paste across unprimed boards. These industrial quantities let artists experiment boldly without counting pennies per brushstroke, unlocking the creative freedom that large formats demand.

Heavy containers of acrylic retarder, flow improver, and gel mediums allow studio practitioners to alter viscosity without diluting pigment load or sacrificing film adhesion on non-absorbent supports.

Hackney and the wider East End remain the creative engine room of London's visual arts community, and Atlantis serves as its supply spine. Artists working in converted railway arches along London Fields and shared warehouse studios across Dalston and Bow rely on the store for fast trade replenishment. The staff are knowledgeable working artists who understand the logistical realities of moving large canvases through tight stairwells and preparing gallery degree shows under tight deadlines.

The warehouse also hosts trade demonstration days where printmakers and canvas technicians demonstrate new emulsion binders and non-toxic etching grounds. This commitment to practical studio problem-solving has sustained Atlantis's reputation as a cornerstone of East London's independent artistic infrastructure, bridging commercial trade distribution with grassroots creative studio culture.

Atlantis Art Materials is situated at Unit 6, Bayford Street Industrial Centre, Bayford Street, London E8 3SE. Opening hours run Monday to Friday from 9:00 am to 5:30 pm, Saturday from 10:00 am to 5:00 pm, and the store is closed on Sundays. London Fields overground station is less than three minutes away on foot, and Hackney Central overground is within easy walking distance.

Because Atlantis stocks heavy rolls of canvas and bulky five-litre containers, the Bayford Street facility offers convenient loading access for studio vans and taxis right outside the warehouse bay. If you are picking up full reams of printmaking paper, bringing a rigid folder or portfolio case is recommended to keep your sheets flat on the train ride home. Plan your visit for a weekday morning to browse the quiet paper drawers at leisure.

The warehouse accepts major cards and studio business accounts. Nearby London Fields park and Broadway Market offer pleasant lunch stops after loading your art supplies, grounding your material shopping in Hackney's rich culinary and creative neighborhood life.