robertmaynord's blog

It is common for artists to use sandpaper in the creation of art. Artists will often prepare a canvas or panel for painting by starting with a layer of white acrylic gesso. As additional layers are added, they are sanded smooth so the surface will not have any bumps or ripples that might distort the final image. There is a problem with hazardous dust in the materials used here.

All three white pigments used in art materials are hazardous when inhaled! Lead white (Flake White) is obviously a problem, but so are titanium white and zinc oxide. Titanium white is listed as a carcinogen by the International Agency for research on Cancer (IARC), and manufacturers are required to list it as such on their MSDS reports, although they rarely do. Zinc oxide is hazardous when inhaled, and is also a poor choice to use due to possible problems with peeling, flaking, and brittleness (http://www.mrs.org/s_mrs/sec_subscribe.asp?CID=11333&DID=216013&action=d...).

Some artists wear face masks when sanding, in order to avoid inhaling dust. While this is a step in the right direction, it is certainly inadequate. When the mask is removed, dust is released into the air around the face. During sanding, dust is scattered about the room, accumulating on clothing and furniture. In contrast, manufacturers are required by workplace laws to maintain safety guidelines. When working with hazardous materials they are required to wear safety glasses, lab coats, dust respirators and gloves. This may not be the “costume” of choice for working artists.

So what can an artist do if a smooth painting surface is desired? Here are some suggestions: 1) Try purchasing professionally made canvas, with the finish of your choice. Let the manufacturer deal with the dust. 2) When using an acrylic or oil-based ground, try applying it with a small roller, instead of a brush. Smooth rollers can be found at most hardware stores. They are usually about 4 inches wide, a good width for working on canvas. 3) Try thinning the acrylic gesso with a small amount of acrylic polymer medium, mixed 50% with water. This works so long as you pay close attention, not allowing any bumps to occur in the early layers. It is also very important add only a small amount of medium mixture to the gesso, to avoid brittleness and maintain absorbency for the paint to adhere.

Hopefully, with these ideas, you will be able to maintain the ideal surface for painting, while avoiding the problems of hazardous dust.

Recently, I took a day off to visit art galleries in other towns, in part to see how things were going with the economic downturn. The art world in general is experiencing hard times, with galleries and museums closing or having financial difficulties. In contrast, galleries focused on "art gifts"appear to be doing well. Hopefully, these galleries have found a new market, a new venue for people who never made it in the door of the upscale Fine Art galleries.

Art Gift galleries usually display paintings for sale, generally priced below $200. But they also display a range of other art objects such as sculpture, handbags, and fiber art. According to one gallery owner I spoke with, they pay the rent with the sales of earrings. This made me reflect on the issue of value in art. It also made me think of the multitudes of art students in ateliers and schools, studying long hours to learn the craft of their chosen profession.It seems the slow economy is resulting in a fluid definition of what can be called art.

For example, I found one place offering genuine "hand painted" glass art objects that can be hung in windows. On the back of each was a label that read "Made in China" -- no artist name, just the country of manufacture. In another store, the owner spoke of the difficulties of selling original hand made Zuni Indian Jewelry. According to the owner, a group of entrepreneurs has set up a manufacturing facility in Latin America. They have changed the name of the town to "Zuni", and are manufacturing "Zuni Indian Jewelry" for sales in North America. As much as 2/3 of the Zuni Indian Jewelry sold in the U.S. is now manufactured by non-Zuni people.

Commoditization is always a threat to art. There is always the potential for losing personal contact with the artist. Witness the hand painted art reproductions of the Great Masters now available on the Internet, painted by highly trained but anonymous Chinese painters. Often, we may not be able to tell whether the art object is actually made by hand, or made by a row of hands, or made in a factory.

The new Art Gift galleries have much to offer as an alternative to the shopping mall mass market. But they also have the responsibility to the artists that create their works. Hopefully, these galleries will offer artists a new audience, where art can flourish and continue to appeal to the senses, communicate emotions, and perhaps even offer something about what it means to be human. The essential key is the naming of the artist - allowing us to know who the creator is, so that we are in some sense relating to another human being. That is the only way to know we are purchasing a work of art, and not just a manufactured commodity.

Last week (April,10th) the Canadian government declared that Pigment Red 3 is toxic to human health, paving the way for a ban on its use in products sold to the public. Pigment Red 3 is a fairly common red, used in many artist's materials that are currently on the market, including some that have a "non-toxic" label. Pr3 is sometimes called Toluidine Red, and may be incorporated into red paints with names such as Eljon Red, Eljon Scarlet, Hansa Red, Hansa Scarlet, Kenalake Scarlet, Solintor Scarlet, and Sunbrite Red. Pr3 can be found in acrylics, oil paints, inks, and plastic materials.

Previously in January, the Canadian government determined that Pigment Yellow 34 and Pigment Red 103 were toxic to human health. These two colors are made with lead chromate and lead sulfate. They were popular at one time, but most artist paint manufacturers have discontinued their use.

It is important to note that toxic pigments can still be found in materials made by major manufacturers, and may even carry a "non-toxic" label.

The labels game in art materials can be quite confusing.  For example, many artist paints are made from widely recognized toxins, but still have safety labels.  By law, all art materials except for furniture, brushes and other tools, must be properly labeled for hazardous contents.  Paints, solvents, clays, crayons and so forth must be properly labeled.  A law called "The Labeling of Hazardous Art Materials Act" spells out the labeling requirement, and it is enforced by the US Consumer Product Safety Commission.

Are there materials on the market that should be labeled for safety, but are not?  Indeed there are.  Just look for the words "Conforms to ASTM D-4236" on the product labels next time you are in an art supplies store - those words should be there.  A manufacturer cannot just create a safety label for a product. The product must first be evaluated by a toxicologist, and that costs money.  This probably has something to do with the lack of ASTM D-4236 labels on some products.

What does all this have to do with  health?  Well, hopefully the art materials you are buying are properly labeled so that you can tell what is in them and what problems there might be.  However, the safety label does NOT mean the item is non-toxic.  It is not at all uncommon for some oil paints to have cadmium or lead as part of the mix.  If it has a ASTM D-4236 label, it can still be sold, even though Cadmium and lead are recognized as toxins.  If an art product contains a toxic element, the label should have a warning appropriate to the content.  It should say for example, "Warning", "Caution", "Avoid Skin Contact", and so forth. Many higher quality oil paints have the pigments listed on the label, in addition to the safety warnings.

The point is, all art products should have safety labels, but the labels are only helpful when they are read and understood. 

It has been quite a project setting up this web site - researching the materials takes a great deal of time. But there is an element of adventure in discovering such things as the oil medium that Leonardo used for painting!  Many of the manufacturers produce a wide range of materials, whether or not they are toxic. The laws for labeling art materials can be quite confusing. Even if the product is a known toxin, it can still be sold for use in art. It just needs a label mentioning the toxicity.  As a friend said to me once, there is a lot of nonsense in the world of art materials.  For those who work with art every day, hopefully this web site will help sort things out.  I would enjoy feedback from any visitors who drop by. For example, is there something you wish we had that you can't find?  Is there information you are looking for? 

Please leave your comments......

And thanks for visiting!

Robert