Frolicking through our campus and past all of the SUGs galleries recently got me thinking about the amount of paint that's used by the artist community. If it's not paint on canvas, it's enamel on casted metal or on wood! And even if the piece itself doesn't contain paint, most shows put a totally fresh coat of paint onto the walls of the gallery spaces before every show. Not to mention the festive colors artists choose to paint their living spaces as well. So I thought I'd give a little lovingly green advice for the artist's paint fix!
-----CONSIDER THIS!-------

I’m sure that you’ve all considered the fact that it’s bad enough that as humans we’re offsetting natural biospheres by overtaking all of these open spaces with urban or suburban sprawl! But have you ever stopped to think that EVERYTHING that surrounds us no matter how minimal it may seem has the potential to make a negative impact on both our bodies and this Earth!?

-->From the car you drive, to the room your sitting in now whilst reading this blog–> your surrounded by shades and hues both vibrant and dull….PAINT! –>Now I know what you’re thinking. What’s so horrible about paint? You’re wondering whats wrong with a little color or a protective coat over the materials you’ve used to build the object or holding or the space your in! But the trouble is that majority of paints used are highly toxic! If it’s not bad enough that there’s paint made out of LEAD & LATEX right?! Well keep running because even if you buy lead free & latex free paint, unless you went the extra mile and looked at the label, you’ve just purchased yourself a solvent-full toxic mess!!! And unless you put that gallon back and run! You’ll be in for a big whiff of harmful VOCs everytime you open your mouth to breathe!

So here’s the DL on the VOC…that is Volatile organic compounds, that like to chill in the paints that surround you in this industriously colorful world we live in!

VOCs can directly contribute to the global warming because even AFTER you’ve finished painting something and it’s rendered shinny and dry…just like vynl and PVC those little VOC bits just chip off into the world over time and continuously pollute! Even worse than the environment (which is certainly bad enough), the effects of breathing this junk is shocking–>ever heard of “Sick Building Syndrome”? Ideally if you really wanted to live in a space with VOCs and have no effect you would have to have nothing but windows…which would render you wall-less and thus no worry for paint on the walls (brilliant)! BUT lucky for all of you aspiring interior decorators and weekend carpenters there’s still hope!

-- learn more -> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Volatile_organic_compound --

There are companies like ECOS that now make NO VOC interior AND exterior primers and paints!! The best part is that places like Greenmaker (a Chicago hardware & home improvement store, all eco friendly materials!) carries these kinds of products at a COMPETITIVE price! Their VOC free primer will seal in whatever toxic mess was painted onto the surfaces earlier and then you can paint over primer with any color your heart contends…say…GREEN?

- http://www.ecospaints.com/voc-free-paint/ , http://www.greenmakersupply.com/ -

Some of these VOC paints are SO good that they’ve passed the military durability standards for the US Navy!!!

- learn more-> http://ct.gov/dep/cwp/view.asp?a=2708&q=324056&depNav_GID=1763 -
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So next time you’re lookin’ for paint just remember….
MOJDEH told you to….LOVE THIS EARTH!