I got this email from Greg Patch from the Green Art Studio– who paints with beeswax (a sustainable) and pigments that are non- toxic. The Papers are sustainable harvested plant based materials or recycled cotton pulp. – See picture below.
- Most paintings/paints are composed of toxic chemicals, petro-oils, plastics and heavy metals along with preservatives and fungicides like formaldehyde
- Most paintings/paints also produce off gases that increase the toxicity of the environment in which they are manufactured and displayed.
- Present labeling of art materials as non-toxic is solely regulated by self interested fine art paint industry representatives.
Which got me to thinking about Green Art, what is it, and how do you know it’s green – So I went to
Green Art.info Here’s what they say Green Art is.
- graphic artists and printmakers developing and using non-toxic, non-polluting and new methods that are safer and healthier.
- tapestry and fibre art makers using natural fibres and ecological themes.
- painters and sculptors using organic, natural, sustainable or recycled materials, or digital methods.
- craftsmen and craftswomen working with natural and organic materials.
- architects creating bioclimatic buildings, using solar or other renewable energy sources and designers of all kinds sensitive to the ecological consequences of their work.
- photographers exploring the natural and social environment.
- green organisations or sites generally concerned with the values and issues of ecology and the environment, or offering services to ecologically concerned industries or organisations.
- online shops selling ecological art or craft products and fair trading goods.
- green places to go, and ecological ways of travelling.
- any other greenish websites that are responsible, well designed, original or filled with useful information.
Green Art is selective guide to websites and pages which show the work of creative artists concerned with environmental and social issues in their themes or in the techniques they use; galleries and places to visit and green ways of getting there (and some artists called Green). You could spend hours on this site looking at all the artworks!
Some other interesting sites
Green Museum online museum emerged from our own experiences making environmental art and from seeing firsthand some of the challenges facing artists, community groups, nonprofit organizations and arts institutions when it came to presenting and discussing environmental art.
Austin Green Art – Austin Green Art (AGA) is a nonprofit organization dedicated to raising awareness about important environmental issues via hands-on, creative, community-based programming & events. AGA utilizes collaboration and the transformative power of the creative arts to engage participants and provides first-hand knowledge about issues relating to conservation, sustainability and the environment.
Buffalo Green Art-
Scape- raises money to protect open spaces, to increase public awareness of environmental and conservation issues, and to promote camaraderie and provide opportunities for exhibition and education for outdoor painters.