Beyond pure aesthetic pleasure, art has always played an important role in many activist movements. From suffrage to anti-war protests, and more recently to the climate action and Black Lives Matters movemsents, art has been used as a tool for education and social action. Due to climate change and environmental degradation crisis we are living, it is important that art practices become more sustainable and as green as possible. Below are some tips on how to green up your art practices. You will find that some of these tips are very simple for you to incorporate into your art practice, while others may affect the way you work and the final product. Start simple and try various alternatives, until you find something that works for you. Every small change counts. Disclaimer: Try these at your own risk! When in doubt call your local waste management office! The products mentioned are from my own experience or recommendations from other artists. I am not endorsing nor being paid for mentioning these products.
If possible, use alternatives to toxic pigments such as cadmiums, leads and cobalts. Liquitex for example offers cadmium-free versions of many of their cadmium colors which perform virtually the same as the original pigments. These cadmium-free paints were likely developed in response to a proposed ban of cadmium pigments by the European Chemical Agency (as described here) after Sweden began considering such a ban due to the pigments’ potential health and environmental impacts. However, their final decision of the ECHA was not to ban the pigments.
For oil painters: If at all possible, avoid using solvents for painting. You are not only helping the environment but also your health! Many artists have successfully switched to using walnut oil to thin their paints. M. Graham makes a wonderful walnut oil that lasts forever! (Bonus: walnut oil does not yellow with time as much as linseed oil). As usual, remember the fat over lean rule to keep your paint films flexible!
For oil painters: If possible, avoid using solvents for cleaning brushes. Instead, you can use water soluble oils for easier cleaning or the following procedure which minimizes the amount of pigment going down the drain:
Step 1: Use a rag to remove most of the oil paint from your brushes.
Step 2: Then consider using inexpensive linseed oil in a glass jar with a coil (like this) to remove most of the remaining oil paint. [Some artists use baby oil, mineral oil, or cooking oil but this step, but warning, these are non-drying oils and traces of these oils may remain in your brushes and affect future paintings]. In a few weeks time the paint will settle at the bottom of the jar with linseed oil and you will have clean oil available on top to clean your brushes. Consider getting two jars if you paint often.
Step 3: Use a rag to remove most of the remaining oil from your brushes.
Step 4: Finally, use dish soap to remove any final traces of oil paint from your brushes. The amount of pigment going down the drain will be minimal.
Once you have enough dirty rags you can take them to the local landfill hazardous material area for safe disposal. Similarly, when your dirty oil jars are too full of paint you can separate the “cleaner” oils at the top from the paint sludge at the bottom. Put the sludge into an inexpensive jar and take it to the landfill hazardous material area.
For acrylic painters: Keeping your brushes clean and dry will go a long ways towards increasing their longevity and minimizing the amount of pigment that goes down the drain. As with oils, try to remove most of the acrylic paint from your brushes by using a rag, and then dip your brush in water to remove the rest of the paint while painting. Tip: Try to keep the ferule (the part where the paint brush hairs are attached to the handle) dry or not wet for too long when cleaning your brushes. Sending dirty acrylic water down the drain WILL CLOG YOUR PIPES OVER TIME potentially resulting in costly repairs! There are several ways of handling the dirty acrylic water and I will list some options below:
Method 1: If you live in a warm area, leave your dirty paint water outside to settle and evaporate. If you have pets, be careful and make sure you do this in an area that is not accessible by pets or wild animals! The evaporation process may take a long time, so it will be good to have many containers ready for use, while others are settling and evaporating. Large yogurt tubs are ideal for this. Ask family and friends to save them for you. If the solids have settled at the bottom of the jar and there is clear water at the top of the jar, you can careful throw out the water at the top. Once all the water has evaporated, you will be left with a film of acrylic at the bottom of the jar that you can peel off. According to this website by Liquitex the resulting film of acrylic paint is considered chemically inert to not be considered hazardous waste. However, always check with your local waste management office to make sure. If you use toxic paints that contain cadmium, lead or cobalt, I would personally take them to the hazardous waste area of the local landfill. Some people add the acrylic paint water to kitty litter or mulch to help it dry faster as discussed here.
Method 2: This tip comes from artist Robert Burridge and is good for separating the acrylic solids from the dissolved solids. It consists of putting panty hose at the top of a 5 gallon bucket that has holes at the bottom. I would not use this on its own but combine it with Option 1 above.This page by artist Susan L. Stewart has more details on this method.
Method 3: You can use chemicals to cause flocculation of the acrylic solids from the paint water. You will end up with flocs or blobs of paint that can be filtered out of the water with a coffee filter. The method is described on this website by Golden Paints. Again, once you have accumulated enough solids, in the filters, you can take them to the local hazardous waste landfill for correct disposal.
“Manatee” by Michelle Irizarry - acrylic on canvas 30”x24”
Did you know that an Unusual Mortality Event (UME) has been declared for manatees in Florida this year as their deaths keep increasing? According to this article, 573 sea cow (manatee) deaths have been reported this year in Florida from January 1st to March 26, 2021. A large number of deaths have been reported in the Indian River Lagoon (IRL), which stretches from Volusia County to Palm Beach County. It is believed that the deaths in the IRL are due to a combination of lack of sea grass in the lagoon from increasing nutrient pollution, and cold weather which keeps them from moving into rivers and canals where they might be able to find other food sources.
“One with Nature” by Michelle Irizarry - acrylics on canvas 16”x20”
Would you be interested in learning from experts about how to green up your art practices without compromising the end result? I have been considering applying for a grant to bring in experts to talk to local Central Florida artists about best practices to green up their art. If there is any interest, I can try to make this happen as the Covid-19 pandemic allows. It could be in person or a webinar type event.
Send me an Email or write a comment below and let me know.
Additional tips:
If new to art consider taking up watercolors which use smaller amounts of pigments and there is no need for additives or solvents. As always, be careful with paints that contain toxic pigments such as lead, cobalt, and cadmium, among others.
Incorporate recycled materials into your art. Things like magazine clippings, paper receipts, stamps, fibers, plastics, etc. can add character and interest to your art. If light-resistance and permanence is a concern, use lightfast materials or apply an UV-resistant coating to the final piece (like this and this).
You do not need a big budget to do art, consider reusing cardboard boxes, posterboards, old signs, and fabrics as your supports.
If you do pour art, consider investing in reusable cups like these.
Reuse! Pasta sauce jars, metal cans, yogurt tubs and others make great containers for water and mixing paints. Ask family and friends to save them for you.
Reuse! Consider using old rags and T-shirts to clean as you paint. Lightly soiled paper towels can be reused for cleaning brushes as well.
Consider carpooling with other local artists to art stores, exhibits, etc.
If you are a teacher, especially an art teacher, you can recycle Crayola markers by participating in their Colorcycle program. Note, the program has been paused during the covid pandemic but keep checking the Crayola website for more info.
Old and misshapen paintbrushes are wonderful for adding texture to your paintings. Think of grass or vegetation clumps!
Instead of throwing out unused paint, consider donating it to local schools or a local community organization. Read here for more tips.
I have heard about many artists using Murphy’s oil soap to clean their brushes but note that according to EWG, it has citronella oil which can be harmful to aquatic life. So after you clean your brushes with it, make sure to wipe most of it off on a rag before washing the brushes in the sink with water.
Use varnishes and solvents in well-ventilated areas, away from wildlife, pets and people. Wear a respirator to protect yourself and gloves (but first make sure the material of the gloves will not react with the chemical you are using).
Beware of odorless solvents as they can still emit toxic fumes without one being aware. See this artists’ guide to oil painting solvents and essential oils from Jerry’s Artarama.
If you use solvents, read here for proper ways to dispose them and any rags you might use.