artists beware, your supplies could be killing you

didn't I comment on this ? ? ?

yes you did, but it cut off all the info so i redid it. took 5 times. go gather formatting.

anyway, most people understand the inhalation effect of the solvents. i refuse to use thinners overall, however there is still some ingredients in the binders (what makes the different types of paints hold together) that get released into the air as they dry. but the majority of the harsh chemicals are found in the pigments themselves which do not change from medium to medium.

There is also the possibility to develop MCS (multiple chemical sensitivity) after long-term exposure to harsh chemicals. My Aunt suffers from this. I hope that you are not suffering from the early symptoms of this, but looking back it is possible. Send me an e-mail if you want her e-mail address. She can tell you everything plus some about MCS.

Just frickin awesome.

things that are good to know...sooner, rather than later

CC, check your Gather mail in a bit. This reminded me of something.

So...did you go to your doctor to have your tox levels checked, young lady?????

It's a very good message your sending out, just please make sure you follow it yourself.
I heart you.

well isn't that just ~lovely~

Wow. That is serious stuff. If toxic levels are found in your system, can it be reversed?

they did a tox screen for manganese and a few others when i was in art school. the look on the doctor's face when i said manganese was an ingredient in a couple of my paints. he thought that was not used anymore and would never have checked me for it if i hadn't brought it up.

i've had a couple of tox screens run, but i'm sure they weren't looking for these compounds, rather they were for the usual things they look for in everyone. i've got to take the list to the doctor when i go back sometime this week, as i haven't gotten any better from last sunday.

not having insurance, they may not be willing to run these tests though.

as far as reversibility, i have no idea duckie.

i just finished reading Diary by Chuck Palaniuck and in that book he talks about the toxicity levels of paints and the various master artists who poisoned themselves in the creation of their works. scary stuff.

i just got this in an email response from the arts safety people.

MR: I'll answer in blue below in the body of your message.

In a message dated 10/11/2008 4:03:05 AM Eastern Standard Time, a_artrat@hotmail.com writes:



hi, i'm an artist living in florida and have been dealing with trying to find the cause of some neurological problems and was wondering if you could send me any information that you may have regarding some of the following.

pigment - compounds, toxicity, symptoms of poisoning



MR: There are about 300 pigments used in fine art paints. They are in two groups, inorganic and organic.

INORGANIC. The inorganic compounds are based primarily on metal compounds such as lead, cadmium, chromium, cobalt, etc. Art materials are exempt from the consumer paint lead laws, so lead can be in many different colors. Many of the metals in inorganic pigments have neurological effects. We see such symptoms a lot in people who work at home, eat or drink while working, sand their canvases, and do similar processes that result in exposure. We even more commonly see these symptoms in people who use pastels since it is impossible to use pastels without inhaling pigments.

ORGANIC. The other category of pigments are the organic pigments. Almost none of these pigments have ever been studied for long term toxic effects. Worse, many are in chemical classes in which are known to cause cancer and other long term effects in animals. Under the insane laws in this country, "untested" chemicals can be labeled "nontoxic," so you are not likely to be aware of the hazards.

COLOUR INDEX IDENTIFICATION. All artists should know that responsible manufacturers put the Colour Index names on the tubes of paints so artists will know what the actual pigments are. Unfortunately, only a few schools teach painting properly and provide this basic technical information that every professional needs.

If you look at the tubes of paints you commonly use and give me a list of the abbreviations for the Colour Index names, I will look them up for you. An example of what I need would be:

PY37 or PY37:1 This stands for C.I. Pigment Yellow 37 and C.I. Pigment Yellow 37:1 which are two different cadmium yellow chemicals.

You need these numbers since the "truth in labeling" laws do not apply to art materials. The manufacturers can call any paint by any name as long as it looks like that color. So sometimes "Cadmium Yellow" paints don't actually contain any cadmium.

If you buy paints from companies that do not include the Colour Index abbreviations on the tube, you are pretty much on your own and I suggest buying paint from a more responsible manufacturer. If you don't have the Colour Index abbreviations, I can guess from the names of the colors, but we can't be sure what pigment is actually in any individual tube.

SOLVENTS. Even more likely to cause neurological problems are solvents such as turpentine, turpenoids (there are many different ones), paint thinners, Liquin, Gamsol, citrus solvents, and the like. There are no "safe" solvents and they all can cause neurological damage. If people can smell solvents when they walk into your studio, you are breathing, working and/or living in a toxic area.

By the time the neurological damage from solvent-exposure can be seen on medical tests, it is permanent. The symptoms can be treated, but the underlying brain damage persists. The symptoms typically are a combination of motor difficulties, short term memory loss, and clinical depression.

This is a well-known disease seen in about 1/2 of retired union industrial painters and other solvent-exposed workers. While art painters as a group have never been studied for this disease, the same solvents are used by both industrial and art painters and I know of a number of diagnosed cases in art painters.

If you are having these kinds of symptoms, you need to get a referral to a physician who is Board Certified in Occupational Medicine. Your regular doctor will be clueless.



i work mainly in oils, but sometimes work in watercolor and pastel.



MR: The same pigments are in all three. They are in all archival art materials including colored pencils.

I hope this explains things. Get back to me with the Colour Index abbreviations if you need a run down on the various pigments.

Monona Rossol, M.S., M.F.A.,
industrial hygienist
Arts, Crafts & Theater Safety, Inc.
and
Safety Officer,
United Scenic Artist's, Local USA829
International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employes (IATSE)
181 Thompson St., #23
New York NY 10012-2586 212/777-0062

artscraftstheatersafety.org

Shit...and all this time I thought my problems were caused by smoking! Damn this creative nature! But really,
Thank you for posting to this group whose only purpose is to thank you for posting to this group.

Wow. Lexie has a lot of those colors on your list. And she sucks on her paintbrush. (Doesn't everyone?)

I imagine it's worse when it's a growing child too. What should I do?

I guess there is a reason for all those "kid's" paints after all. Now I wish I'd bought them.

I am going to send this to my sis! Thanks!

andrea, explain to her the dangers of putting the paintbrush in her mouth. it's an old habit of mine that i've really had to break myself of, and every now and again catch myself doing it still.

and make sure she washes her hands really well before eating anything after painting.

debby, that letter from the safety organization really freaked me out. i had no idea that art supplies weren't regulated and the ones used before 1988 (i was using them back then too) were even more dangerous.

please pass this on to any artist that you may know.

This is a very good Article CC and good for DISCUSSION . . .

This is going to be FEATURED in Artistic Therapy this weekend.

Blessings ~
Rene

This is terrifying. We use just plain acrylics here and I always thought they were safe, in fact, my 5 year old paints with them too... and our house is never ventilated when we work.

*shakes head* It seems nothing is really safe anymore.

Perhaps we should work in the timeless medium of crayon instead.

thanks rene. it's definately something all artists should be made aware of. i am going to be going to counseling soon with a former artist from NY for 20 years who had to stop due to toxicity issues. hopefully she will have some suggestions on how to work thru this or find out if that's what's causing my physical problems.

jennifer, just keep an eye on kids eating the crayons as they are all made from the same pigments, just a much smaller amount. and make sure they wash their hands well and don't touch their mouths or eyes with paint on their hands.

Excellent! Featuring this on "Fifty States of Whatever You Want"!

thank you pamela.

My Aunt said she got in touch with you - hopefully she can get you some info that will help.
Warning - she can be overwhelming with information at times!

thanks for that great and very important information!!

pIF Paying it forward

PIF!!

Scary stuff. Good warning.