The Campaign for Cadmium

Unless you have been locked in a studio cupboard for the past few weeks you must be aware of the imminent threat of an outright ban on cadmium by the ECHA (European Chemical Agency). There have been many articles including a great piece int he July Issue of Artist and Illustrator, written by Michael Craine, the MD of Spectrum Paint. In it he lays out the reasons why the ban is under consideration, and the rather startling implications for artists if it goes ahead.

The proposal is not aimed at artists directly, but we will be affected by it to a considerable degree. Whether you paint in watercolour, oil or acrylic, a ban on cadmium-based pigments will have a serious impact on your colour palette. I don't use cadmium reds as often but I use both Cadmium Yellow and Lemon all the time (those landscape greens don't mix themselves) and from long experience I know that other yellows don't have the intensity, light-fastness and pigment strength I need.

Artists have been caught up in an environmental issue to do with cadmium from spent batteries in landfill, leaching into and contaminating groundwater. If the cadmium ban goes ahead, it will have a considerable impact on your favourite art materials shop. You won;t be able to get round it by buying raw pigment for making your own colours - production will just stop and cadmium colours in all forms would be removed from sale.

The European artists' colours association (CEPE) is the body that represents artists' paint manufacturers in Europe, and members include Spectrum, Winsor and Newton and Dale-Rowney amongst others. The experience of artists will help them to present an informed contribution to the debate.

To help them to understand how artists dispose of their used paint from brushes and how mush is actually wasted, CEPE woudl like to hear from painters (whether they use oil, acrylic or watercolour) how much they value the cadmium colours in their palette; how much they use, and how they dispose of the residues; given the cost of cadmium colours, most artists try not to water any at all if they can help it. Even to the extent of splitting and scraping out the tubes for the last dregs!

To have your say, you can go to:

www.echa.europa.eu/restrictions-under-consideration

or

www.artistsandillustrators.co.uk/cadmium

You only have a few weeks to make a submission; the ECHA consultation ends on the 19th September; then deliberations start, and the ban could be in place within two years.

Let Pegasus Art know your thoughts on the topic by commenting below. Do you use cadmium colours? Are there any products out there for you which deliver the same intensity?