I believe that in these days of increasing environmental awareness, we must all be conscious of how we live and the products we use.
Although I have always endeavoured to use kinder products, I have felt uncomfortable over the years with some of these I have used and wanted to make my studio as environmentally sound as I possibly could. After spending many years researching and testing alternatives I would like to share some of my findings with you.
Although I am trying to avoid plastics as much as possible in the studio, I really don’t want to demonize them either. Whether we like it or not they are extremely useful. I endeavour to utilize what I can and would rather than use containers many times rather than seeing them going in the bin. What concerns me is the amount of plastic we wash down our sinks, even many of the more 'environmentally friendly' materials still have a high proportion of plastic in them. On this page I will give you some good alternatives and show you ways of altering how you work with plastic based products and dispose of the waste in a conciensious way.
In my studio, like many others, plastic based products like acrylic paint and screen printing ink and adhesives were very much a feature of my cupboard. It is true that compared to other more chemical based glues and inks, these are kinder to the planet, but we are still washing huge amounts of liquid plastic down the drain each year. Imagine, how many of us decorate our houses each year alone, how much excess paint we wash away. The plastic particles in these paints are so minute that they cannot then be taken back out of the water. It goes back into our seas, coming back out of our taps and in our drinking water. If you do use plastic based products, there are a number of ways you can reduce the impact.
Firstly, only squeeze out what you need so you are not having to waste unnecessarily.
Use a brush instead of a roller if possible and wipe the brush on a rag before washing to get rid of the excess.
Let any excess dry on the pallete before scraping into the bin.
ACRYLIC PRODUCTS
If you are using acrylic based paints and inks be mindful how you use them. Maybe apply with a glue spreader that can be wiped and disposed of rather than a brush that needs to be washed. Put any excess back in the bottle and leave what is left to dry naturally, then peel it off and dispose of it in as a solid mass.
Screen printing especially needs a lot of cleaning up and I looked at many possible ways of taking out the plastic using various filtration systems. I realized that although you can take out the main bulk of the plastic, you will never get out the ones you can’t see. This being said, there are a number of ways you can help the situation.
There are a huge variety of screen printing inks on the market, they all contain either many chemicals or a plastic base.
The best of these in my opinion is PERMASET. They have experimented for nearly 30 years to make marketable inks that are as environmentally sound as they can be. Please click on the below ink for more information.
https://www.permaset.com.au/
Although you will never be able to take out all of the plastic and pigment in the water, there are ways to filter out some of the particles. Evaporation, a sand bucket and Flocculation are the three most simple and cheap ways.
Please click on these links for videos of artists who use these methods
R Collis - How to Dispose Acrylic Paint Water (Evaporation)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xoVGv4ZkO8E
Artist Workshop - Environmental Considerations: Disposal of Paint Waste Water (Sand bucket)
https://www.artistsworkshopinc.com/uploads/4/3/9/5/4395932/environmental.pdf
Golden Paints - Removing Water-Based Paint Solids from Rinse Water. (Flocculation)
https://www.goldenpaints.com/just-paint-article3
If you would rather create your art with plastic free paints and inks, there are other possibilities for these too.
WATERCOLOUR PAINTS are a mixture of pigment and gum Arabic. Additives like glycerin, ox gall and honey are also used.
GOUACHE is very similar to Watercolour but is made thicker and more opaque with chalk. Beware though; some paint companies thicken with acrylic instead of chalk so it would be wise to speak to the manufacturer before buying.
TEMPERA is a very old paint recipe that is made when needed from powdered pigment and egg white.
You can buy ready-made Tempera paint but as with Gouache some manufacturers use an acrylic base. There are many recipes for it from all over the world, and you would need to speak to manufacturers to find one you are happy with.
There are also many recipes online for making your own paints and inks, it is a very satisfying and eco friendly way of working.
HOUSEHOLD PAINTS
I have found the differences in household paints to be vast. Most contain plastic, and many chemicals and driers. Of these 'Farrow and Ball' is a good one, they are concious of the environment and have their own water treatment facility that recycles 97% of their waste water.
I personally use products from 'Earthborn Paints' https://earthbornpaints.co.uk/ they are plastic and chemical free, lovely to use and have a wonderful selection of colours.
Lakeland paints are also a good company, https://www.lakelandpaints.co.uk
And Auro Paints, https://www.auropaint.co.uk/ do some lovely products.
A NOTE ON LATEX
Natural latex rubber is a natural and biodegradable product that comes from the Rubber tree. Many household paints are labelled as 'latex paints', but in fact most contain no latex at all, but a synthetic variation. They are usually made from a combination of vinyl acetate and acrylates, that are not biodegradable.
OIL BASED INKS AND PAINTS
It is generally assumed that oil based art paints are more harmful than water based, while this is often true it is not always the case. Many do contain unpleasant chemicals, and certain pigments used are toxic, but there are some brands of oil paint and printing ink that are more environmentally friendly. Cranfield Caligo Safe wash oil paints and printing inks for example consist of mainly Linseed oil and pigment. Apart from a small percentage of drying agents and soap, those are the only ingredients. The main problem is what is often used to dilute and clean up at the end. Artists White spirits and Turpentine are usually used which are very volatile liquids. Oil paints can be cleaned up wonderfully with vegetable oil, and some, like Cranfield safe wash oils, can now be cleaned up with soap and water making them a wonderful alternative, although care should still be taken to not wash too much down the drain.
You can also buy a lovely variety of earth pigments online, with which you can make your own paints. This is the most ecological way of working as the only ingredients you need are the linseed oil and pigment. There will be no need for preservatives and bulking agents.
TOOLS
Try and utilize what you can rather than buying new equipment, I have made many of the tools in my studio myself. Rather than buying new sets of everything, I have really enjoyed using up scrap materials. They are ‘professional grade’ and range from bench hooks and Barrens for lino workshops, screen-printing tables, screens and squeegee rests to a large etching press made from an old mangle that was my last press.
ADHESIVES
There is a huge selection of adhesives on the market, for every imaginable job. Sometimes despite your best intentions you need something stronger but if the job allows there are some great alternatives you could try.
PVA (Polyvinyl Alcohol) in it's most basic form is actually fairly good environmentally. Although, even though it is non-toxic and biodegradeable, it is worth noting that it needs very specific conditions in order to break down effectively.
There are many manufactuerers of PVA and the company you purchase it from can vary considerably. Many add it toxic chemicals that keep it useable for longer, more flexible or quicker drying. They can contain harmful solvents and volatile organic compounds (VOC's).
LAKELAND WOOD GLUE is a wonderful alternative to traditional pva, it has no formaldahyde or VOC's at all. It works very well on paper and fabric as well as wood.
There are also many great recipes to make your own glues, one that I regularly use is WHEAT STARCH PASTE, a glue that has been used for thousands of years in Japan and often used in the restoration of antique books. I find that heating for at least 25 minutes until it becomes translucent and stringy makes a big difference to the end product. You can find a good recipe at https://www.canada.ca/en/conservation-institute/services/conservation-preservation-publications/canadian-conservation-institute-notes/wheat-starch-paste.html. Although it does not dry instantly.
But if like many time is an issue, there are a couple of other adhesives that I really like for paper: -
COCCOINA is made from potato starch and almond and smells like Marzipan. The tin even comes with a little well in the centre and a brush!
AURO natural resin universal adhesive. Instead of the acrylic base, they have developed one from natural latex. You can find this and other products from Auro at https://auropaint.co.uk/
COPYDEX is a fantastic glue that is made from natural latex rubber and is 100% biodegradable and non-toxic. It is a bit pungent (I actually love the smell), but very effective!
*REMEMBER - the ingredients of these glues vary considerably and can affect your work, for example if you need a shiny surface or not. It is best to try a section first.
VARNISH AND FINISHING OILS
Most varnish either contains many chemicals and VOC’s (volatile organic compounds) or has a plastic base. These ones are far kinder to the environment.
LAKELAND WOOD VARNISH available in gloss, satin or mat
AURO CLEAR GLOSSY LACQUER is a water-based varnish that is VOC and polymer free! They also have a matt version and many other eco products.
OSMO POLYX OIL is wonderful for finishing wood surfaces and very environmentally sound.
I hope this information is helpful to you! If you know of any other products or good ways of going green with your art and craft please do let me know and I will add it on!
Let’s start an ECO CRAFT MOVEMENT…sharing knowledge is the key!
Thank you
Rachel