Title: The Health Risks of Painting with Oils, Acrylics, and Watercolors - Artsy
Headings: Your Paints May Contain Toxic Chemicals. Here’s How to Avoid Harming Yourself and the Environment
Creativity
Your Paints May Contain Toxic Chemicals. Here’s How to Avoid Harming Yourself and the Environment
Photo by Jenna S.
Know what your paints are made of
Paint swatches.
Be aware of toxic pigments
Paint and materials.
Make your studio safe
Follow best practices for disposing of paint and materials

Content: Since all acrylic paints and their mediums (and many oil mediums) release dangerous chemicals into the air as they dry, ventilation is key. The solution can be as straightforward as opening a window, but if you regularly create large works and use a lot of paint, installing a ventilation system (or renting a studio with a system in place) is a good idea. Oil painters shouldn’t work around open containers of turpentine, mineral spirits, or citrus-based cleaners. Solvents evaporate with exposure to the air, and are known to cause a host of physical and neurological problems when inhaled repeatedly over time. Instead, open your solvents only when you need to clean your brushes, and buy more brushes so that the solvents can stay closed for most of the painting day. Solvent-covered rags also release dangerous particles into the air as they dry. By removing them from the studio at the end of the day, you’ll avoid walking into bad air the next morning. The rags can be hung outside for reuse or stored in a tightly-lidded, metal container until you can dispose of them properly. If they have oil on them, make sure that you wet the rags with water. Oily rags generate heat as they dry and can spontaneously combust if they’re crushed together in storage.