Sustainability in the Practice of Art

There are times when the word 'sustainability' elicits a sort of non-reaction from me. It's a mixture of a defensive reaction from guilt, and being jaded from years of going through the cycle of (1) feeling bad about my footprint, (2) trying to make some changes, (3) realizing that the difficulty of making change lies in getting others to support the change, and then (4) eventually slacking off on the little efforts in the defeated realization that the problem is big. Really big. Until I hear about the melting glaciers again, and I go back to (1) all over again. 

You will have to allow me to add another to the many blog posts on the Internet about sustainability because I feel obligated to write this post. It's an uncomfortable topic for me because I believe in the palettes I make, but there is so much controversy around the material I have chosen: plastic. I feel the need 'to come clean' because honestly, I can also look anyone in the eye and say "I do my very best to act responsibly towards the environment, as much and as often as I can".

I have an aversion to discussions about people's beliefs and practices because I have found that it leads to name-calling and inadvertently offending others who may be reading your opinions on a bad morning. But I do have a stand on plastic. To shun plastic collectively is not only impractical but also naïve. Plastic is not inherently damaging, it is the way humans use and dispose of many plastic materials that has led to the environmental damage caused by it. Plastic is an amazing material that is used in diverse applications of food safety, car safety, life-saving medical equipment, space exploration and so much more. Sure, it's technically possible to live without plastic, but so many 'simple' things would no longer be possible if we did. This page summarizes these very well ➤

The palettes in my shop are made with craft-grade 2-part polyurethane elastomer. Their ads say it has a safety rating of a Crayola crayon, but I advise against use by children especially if you fill them with artist-grade paints. When cured properly, this plastic is rigid and durable, it will yellow slightly with time, but it is chemically inert. That's a passive way of saying 'it will not break down'. However, the same is true about many regular plastic items in your home, or the majority of other palettes in the market for that matter. If you dispose of inert plastic properly, then it's good; but if you don't, where it ends up and what possible damage it will cause cannot really be blamed on plastic as a material. That bit is all our fault.

All of that said, I have decided to produce palettes only until my current supplies run out, about 3-5 shop updates more. When I finish my PE material, I will not produce any more of my palettes until I can afford to get a 3D-printer setup that uses Ingeo, a brand of polylactic acid (PLA) material that is made by 'harvesting' greenhouse gases from the environment. (Learn more about Ingeo here ➤) I will admit that even though the palettes are my main products, I didn't feel too heavy about making this decision. It feels right, and it gives me a good goal.

To everyone who has supported and those who decide to continue to support my little palettes, please know that I am extremely grateful to you. I feel a sort of connection to you, my artist-customers, because your purchase means we have shared a common need, and I hopefully helped you fill it. It's truly an honor to be part of your creative process.

Please be assured that your palettes will last years if you don't expose it to extreme temperatures, heat in particular. With normal use, they're as good as any plastic palette you can buy from the shops. Look after them, and if you don't need them anymore, please dispose of them properly as you should any plastic item.

And now, after rambling on about the virtues of plastic, please allow me to share the little ways that I try to be 'greener' as an artist and shop-keeper. It is my hope that since we share the same practice, you will find some of these useful:

1. In my studio, there are two trash bins. Into one bin goes regular trash, the stuff that will decompose - usually paper that can't be reused anymore, dried flowers, the like. (Reusable paper goes into a separate box.)
   
   Into the other are clean, dry plastic materials that I can put into our Ecobricks. We've only just started this practice and I was so glad when I found out about this idea. An Ecobrick, as defined by the movement's website, "is a plastic bottle packed solid with non-biological waste to make a re-useable building block.  Best of all, you don’t need any fancy machines, special skills, engineers or even politicians to get started." Learn more about Ecobricks here ➤
   
   Should there be a time when you don't feel the need for the palettes you purchased from my shop, the plastic inserts make perfect materials for Ecobricking. Just be careful when you chop them up, they're made to be quite durable, so chopping it to pieces will take a little elbow grease.
   
   
2. My household keeps the clean and dry brown paper bags from our shopping. I shred these and use them to minimize my use of bubble wrap in my shop packaging. They are springy but firm when packed, not to mention they manage to look lovely in the boxes, despite being what society would call 'trash'!
   
   In general, I reuse packaging material in my shop - 80% of the bubble wrap and foam sheets I use are from packages I have been sent. We make an effort to open our packages carefully with the intention of reusing what we can. So if you've noticed that my packaging material isn't brand new, I'm hoping you didn't mind - it's frugal, it's eco-friendly, and you've helped me make a teeny tiny change.
   
   (Brown paper bags that are not coated or printed, i.e. plain kraft paper, can also go into compost, if you have a garden.)
   
   
3. Part of my art kit is a little bottle of water. I keep this thinking I might need water and not be able to find any (which thankfully hasn't actually happened yet), but I have found that the bigger use of it is keeping my rinse water contained until I can dispose of it at home. I refrain from leaving my rinse water on a café table, even in those complimentary paper cups, because I think about the unknowing person cleaning up, unaware of what's in the water, probably just dumping it in the sink along with every other dish. (Culture context: In the Philippines, café employees clear up after patrons, and more often the case than isn't, dishes are washed manually.) This person will clean up thinking only of food debris, without special consideration for chemicals or paint pigments. I'd hate to be responsible for Cadmium Yellow traces ending up on a kid's order. Okay, that's a bit exaggerated, I don't even use Cadmium Yellow, and I don't know how a commercial kitchen actually does stuff, but you get what I'm saying.
   
   The San Francisco Department of Environment has a good page on the disposal of art materials. Majority of the process might not be applicable to many of us, but it helps to be aware of the special attention needed for some materials, rinse water is pointed out. Check out their list of instructions here ➤
   
   
4. The clothes my son grows out of don't all get given away, I keep some to use in my studio instead of paper towels. I always have two on hand: one for dabbing on to remove excess water and paint off my brush, and another I keep clean for lifting mixes off paper. There are a couple other ones used for general wiping up.
   
   For applications that do need paper towels, I will admit a cheap thing I do, surely a habit that some of you may be too embarrassed to follow, but what the heck, I'll share it anyway. When I'm given paper napkins at restaurants, I pick up the ones we didn't use and stick it in my bag. In my mind, well, I know they've not been used but the employees will put them in the trash for sure, so why not take it, right? So I do, and they do get used, so even when it might be yuck-inducing for some, I'll probably keep doing it.

That's about it for now. The dream is to one day be able to catch and use rain water, run the home using solar power, and help reduce carbon in the atmosphere by making watercolor travel palettes. Until then, we'll carry on with the little everyday things, hoping that in these small ways, we slowly become part of the solution and less of the problem.