Casein dates back to the ancient Egyptians. Thousands of years later Egyptian art is still able to be seen thanks to the permanency of this medium.
At the time of the Society's inception transparent watercolor was the accepted practice of this aqua medium. Watercolor exhibitions frowned upon the use of opaque watercolor thus the new Society afforded the Casein painters an opportunity to exhibit their art.
About a decade later a synthetic version of Casein became commercially available. It was called Acrylic paint. It's opaque, fast-drying qualities earned it quick acceptance by the art community. Realizing the potential of this new, related art product the Casein Society welcomed to their exhibitions artists who used it.
The president of the Society at that time, Ralph Fabri, took action to change the name of the Society to reflect this new acceptance of Acrylic. So with financial assistance from the Grumbacher Co. the name legally became The National Society of Painters in Casein and Acrylic . The new Society became a National Showcase for the two opaque aqua-media holding the Annual Exhibitions at some of the most prestigious art institutions in New York City. The Art Student's League, the Riverside Museum, the American Institute of Arts and Letters, the National Academy of Design, the National Arts Club and now the Salmagundi Club have all taken turns in presenting the exhibitions to the public. About 30 states are typically represented in the Annual Exhibitions.
