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Who and what is Take It Easel?
My name is Tobin. I am the owner and builder of Take It Easel, the stable portable art easel specifically designed for use as a plein air easel, yet versatile enough to be used as a full-time studio easel.
I took over my father’s easel-building business on Cape Cod (Massachusetts) during my summer breaks while studying engineering at Trinity College in Connecticut. My engineering studies gave me a great appreciation for the precision and attention to detail that goes into each Take It Easel, ensuring flawless performance for decades.
I am currently building the easels in a small shop in South Burlington, Vermont. You can reach me directly via email, at info@takeiteasel.com, or you can call me at 802.327.3501. Also, many of your questions can be answered by viewing our FAQ.
I always answer my phone when I'm available, and if I miss your call I will gladly return your call ASAP.
While I'm not a painter myself, I can always rely on my mother, Rosalie Nadeau, for artistic input and information…she has always been and continues to be a bountiful source of information relating to oil painting and pastel painting in studio and en plain air. -
How my father began building the Take It Easel
In 1988, my mother, plein air painter Rosalie Nadeau, purchased the last Gloucester easel made by the fellow who built them for Emile Gruppé, his sons, and the Gloucester School of Painting.
When other painters saw the quality and stability of this plein air easel they asked where they could get one; alas no one was building them.
My father, Tom Nadeau, asked for and received permission to carry on this legacy, and then began building them in his spare time…he called it Take It Easel. After many attempts to improve the original design, the only modifications he made at that time were to use stronger materials. -
Where did the Take It Easel originate?
Take It Easel is our revival of the Anderson easel, introduced from Northern Europe in the early 1900s. Renamed the Gloucester Easel and made popular by Emile Gruppé and the Gloucester School of Painting, it was the answer to their need for a stable easel for plein air painting in windy conditions along the uneven rocky New England coast.
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