Lab testing bio based Acrylics
I have been using clumping cat litter for several years.
This is not an admission of some weird fetish but an attempt to use Acrylic paint without harming the ecology of our water systems. They are precious and are already polluted enough so I was determined that my art practice wouldn’t add to the problem. I have been teaching my students about the responsible disposal of acrylic paint water for as long as I have been using it myself so it still always astonishes me that few artists either know about it, or employ it.
It is as simple as a bucket lined with a bin liner and filled a third of the way up with clumping cat litter. Not any cat litter will do as the waste water you pour into it has to be absorbed so that it can be lifted out in one clump and disposed of in the general waste. This admittedly ends up in landfill which is still not ideal, but at least it doesn’t end up filling our rivers and streams, and ultimately our glasses with plastic particles!
So with this practice in mind I have been looking for an alternative solution for a long time. I had researched several brands that purported to have developed a solution, one of them based in America (Natural Acrylic Paint) which is plant based and apparently mixes well with conventional acrylics. I have yet to test these but they are tricky to get hold of in the UK, having a distributor in Holland. Sadly Brexit has put paid to cheap import duties so I think that currently this isn’t a solution although I am keen to try them out.
Another brand that has a bio alternative is Liquitex, and it is these that I have tested out to see if the colours are as vibrant, coverage as good and drying times as quick (or slow).
I have created a video to show my findings, but in short I think that they are a great alternative, with good thick consistency, great coverage and vibrant colour options. Sadly no fluorescents at the moment but I think I can work with them. I will stick with my clumping cat litter for now, in case I feel the urge to reach for a conventional acrylic and accidentally mix it with an eco friendly version, but it is great that at last the manufacturers have heard our cry for paints that give us visual joy, but actual harm to the environment.
Have you tried eco friendly alternatives to acrylic paint? If so I would love to hear from you…get in touch
