Art Studios

Whether you own or work in an art studio, or simply enjoy art as a hobby, you may be exposing yourself to chemicals and solvents that could potentially affect your health. Working safely means becoming more knowledgeable about the hazards of the media that you work with, making changes in how you select and handle your art materials, and creating a healthier environment to work in.

With constant exposure to products that have a high level of toxicity, Modern Alchemy Air Purifiers strongly encourages the use of an air purifier for any artist concerned about their health and well-being. By operating a unit with medical-grade HEPA filtration and deep-beds of specially blended activated carbon, you can help to protect yourself, as well as your fellow artists, from odours, toxic chemicals and most importantly, dangerous airborne volatile organic compounds.

Find out more about the specific air quality issues associated with the media that you work in, and their impact on your health:

Pigments
Water-Based Paints
Non Water-Based Paints
Dry Drawing Media
Liquid Drawing Media
Airbrushing and Spraying
Clay
Glazes
Kilns
Glass Blowing

Pigments

Pigments are found in oil paints, acrylics, watercolour paints, gouaches, tempera paints, encaustics, casein paints, enamels and epoxy paints.

Hazards

• Poisoning can occur if toxic pigments are inhaled while working.
• Paints made with lead pigments can cause anaemia, gastrointestinal problems, peripheral nerve damage, kidney damage and reproductive system damage.
• Pigments made with cobalt, cadmium and manganese may also be hazardous. In particular, cadmium pigments, chrome yellow and zinc yellow may cause lung cancer.

Water-Based Paints

Water-based paints include watercolour, acrylic, gouache, tempera and casein.

Hazards

• Acrylic paints contain a small amount of ammonia, which may cause eye, nose and throat irritation in people who are sensitive to it.
• Acrylics and some gouaches contain a small amount of formaldehyde as a preservative that could cause an allergic reaction among those sensitized to it.
• When dissolved in ammonium hydroxide, casein paints can be highly irritating when inhaled.
• Water-based paints contain a preservative to prevent mould and bacterial growth, which may cause allergic reactions in some people.
• See Pigments section for other hazards.

Non Water-Based Paints

Oil paints, encaustics and tempera paints require the use of mineral spirits for thinning paint and turpentine for brush clean-up.

Hazards

• Acute inhalation of high concentrations of paint thinner, turpentine vapours and other solvents can cause dizziness, headaches, drowsiness, nausea, fatigue, poor coordination, irritation of the respiratory system and loss of consciousness.
• Chronic inhalation of solvents can result in decreased coordination, behavioural changes and brain damage, or in the case of turpentine, cause allergies, kidney damage and respiratory irritation.
• Natural resins like copal, dammar and Japanese lacquer may cause allergies, while rosin dust can cause asthma.
• Encaustic involves heating wax, which produces vapours and decomposition fumes that can be strong respiratory irritants.
• Epoxy resins may contain diglycidyl ethers, which are irritants and suspected carcinogens. Epoxy hardeners may cause respiratory irritation and allergies.
• See Pigments section for other hazards.

Dry Drawing Media

This includes dust-creating media such as charcoal, chalks and pastels that are often fixed with aerosol spray fixatives.

Hazards

• Inhalation of large amounts of charcoal dust, for example, from blowing excess charcoal off a drawing, can lead to chronic lung problems.
• Coloured chalks, although not toxic, can be asthma triggers.
• Pastels are especially dangerous because they can contain toxic pigments such as cadmium pigments and chrome yellow (lead chromate), both of which contain suspected carcinogens. Again, blowing excess pastel dust off a drawing is the most common way in which pastel dust is inhaled.
• Both permanent and workable spray fixatives contain toxic solvents that are easily inhaled as the products are sprayed in close proximity to the artist.

Liquid Drawing Media

This includes solvent-based pen and ink media and felt tip markers.

Hazards

• Solvent-based drawing inks and permanent felt tip markers can contain the solvent xylene, a highly toxic aromatic hydrocarbon. Newer brands of permanent markers may contain propyl alcohol, which is less toxic, but still a known eye, nose and throat irritant.

Airbrushing and Spraying

Artists use many products in spray form, including paints, fixatives, retouching sprays, varnishes and adhesive sprays.

Hazards

• Airbrushing and spraying produces a fine mist which is a serious inhalation hazard because artists work so close to their artwork. Airbrushing or spraying with paints that contain solvents is especially dangerous, as you may be inhaling liquid droplets of the actual solvents or pigments.
• See Pigments section for other hazards.

Clay

Clays are minerals composed of hydrated aluminum silicates, often containing large amounts of crystalline silica. Sometimes, grog (ground firebrick), sand, talc, vermiculite, perlite, and small amounts of minerals such as barium carbonate and metal oxides are added to modify clay properties.

Hazards

• Chronic inhalation of large amounts of free silica during clay mixing can lead to silicosis, or “potter’s rot.” Symptoms of silicosis include shortness of breath, dry cough, emphysema, and high susceptibility to lung infections such as tuberculosis.
• Chronic inhalation of kaolin can result in kaolinosis, a disease in which the lungs become mechanically clogged.
• Talc, which is used to make clay slip, can be contaminated with fibrous asbestos or asbestos-like materials. Asbestos is extremely toxic when inhaled and may cause asbestosis, lung cancer, mesothelioma, stomach cancer and intestinal cancer.
• Sand, perlite, grog and vermiculite contain free silica and, as such, are highly toxic by inhalation. Vermiculite is also frequently contaminated with asbestos.
• Exposure to moulds growing in wet clay can cause hypersensitivity, pneumonia, asthma or other respiratory problems.
• Clay scraps on the floor, bench and other surfaces can dry and pulverize, producing an inhalation hazard due to the presence of free silica.

Glazes

Glazes used to colour or finish clay pieces are a mixture of silica, fluxes and colorants. Common fluxes include lead, barium, lithium, calcium and sodium.

Hazards

• Lead compounds are highly toxic by inhalation. Symptoms of lead poisoning include damage to the brain, kidneys, gastrointestinal system or peripheral nervous system, as well as anaemia, chromosomal damage, birth defects and miscarriages.
• Other fluxes such as barium and lithium are also highly toxic by inhalation, but to a lesser extent than lead.
• Certain colorant compounds of particular metals are known or suspected human carcinogens (e.g., arsenic, beryllium, cadmium, chromium (VI), nickel, uranium).
• Other colorant compounds, although not carcinogenic, are highly toxic when inhaled (e.g., antimony, barium, cobalt, lead, lithium, manganese and vanadium).
• Chronic inhalation of free silica during the weighing and mixing of glazes can lead to silicosis. Symptoms of silicosis include shortness of breath, dry cough, emphysema, and high susceptibility to lung infections such as tuberculosis.
• Spray application of glazes can be particularly hazardous because of the potential inhalation of glaze mists.

Kilns

At or above stoneware firing temperature, lead, antimony, cadmium, selenium and precious metals vaporize and the metal fumes can either escape from the kiln, settle inside of it, or on the ceramic ware itself. Nitrogen oxides and ozone can also be generated by the firing process.

The early stages of bisque firing involve the oxidization of organic clay matter to carbon monoxide and other combustion gases. Sulphur breaks down later, producing highly irritating sulphur oxides. Also, nitrates and nitrogen-containing organic matter break down to nitrogen oxides.

Galena, cornish stone, crude feldspars, low grade fire clays, fluorspar, gypsum, lepidolite and cryolite can release toxic gases and fumes during glaze firings. As carbonates, chlorides and fluorides are broken down, they release carbon dioxide, chlorine and fluorine gases.

Hazards

• Chlorine, fluorine, sulphur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide and ozone are all highly toxic, causing acute or chronic lung problems when inhaled in large quantities. In addition, long-term inhalation of low levels of these gases can cause chronic bronchitis and emphysema. Fluorine gas can also cause bone and teeth problems.
• Many metal fumes generated at high temperatures are highly toxic when breathed in, particularly lead, which vaporizes at a relatively low temperature.
• Carbon monoxide from fuel-fired kilns or the combustion of organic matter in clays is highly toxic by inhalation.

Glass Blowing

The art of glass blowing comes with its own set of health hazards. General ventilation may not be enough to adequately protect the artist from exposure to silica, lead, dry metal powders, toxic dust, and a variety of gases and fumes.

Hazards

• The most common health issues are lung problems such as significantly decreased lung capacity and eventually, after many years of exposure, silicosis.

Talk to Modern Alchemy Air Purifiers about affordable ways to help protect yourself from the multiple health hazards and potential long-term health risks associated with working in an art studio and with artist materials. Depending on the media you work with, specialty air purifiers such as the AllerAir 5000 Vocarb, AllerAir AirMedic Exec and AllerAir 5000 DX Exec are possible choices for making your working environment a healthier one.

Phone: 613-894-0331
Toll Free: 1-877-GO-7-PURE (1-877-467-7873)
Email: info@modernalchemyair.com

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