Everyday household items that would have been thrown away after having served their singular purpose have been repurposed into being art supplies. Here, an old peanut butter jar is used to hold water or pencil shavings. A plastic lid that topped a dishwasher cleaner container makes for a convenient paint palette. Rags cut from an old T-shirt clean paintbrushes and other messes.
Being environmentally friendly is a matter of great importance to me, and it is a matter that affects my daily decisions. Naturally, this interest has colored my artistic endeavors. The following three green practices that I employ when I work on any art project are not difficult to implement. Boiled down, they involve being mindful of consumption and avoiding excessive waste.
Everything that can be recycled gets recycled. This includes paper and plastic packaging of art supplies. (Select supplies, including various pens and pencils, are available in open stock, so excessive packaging is forgone.) Some of my art supplies themselves are recycled items. An old, cleaned plastic food container makes for a nice vessel to hold water or catch pencil shavings. A plastic container lid of some kind serves as a handy paint palette. An unfortunately stained T-shirt assumes new purpose as it blots media and cleans the occasional mess. When disposal of supplies is called for and recycling services for those items are available, I will recycle them. If recycling services are not available, I try to find helpful ways to continue to use certain items by repurposing them.
Art supplies are used fully. Every last possible drop of paint will be used from its tube. Pencils will shrink to their smallest size with usage and sharpening before they are retired. Some of the paper that I use has the brand’s debossed watermark along the edge. Instead of throwing that part of the paper away or even recycling it, I use it as swatch paper to test products, color combinations, and layering techniques. And I make sure to use the back of that paper as well. Sometimes the back of a paper actually has a preferred surface for working with certain media. I use my supplies. Even the “unusable” parts.
Art supplies are treated with care. I do not allow paint to dry in paintbrush bristles and destroy the brush. Markers and pens are capped when they are not in use. Paper and canvases are stored safely to avoid damage such as tears or dents. As for unavoidable damage and unpleasant accidents, there are ways to extend an item’s usefulness. A paintbrush that has undergone wear and tear can be used to paint interesting textures. Lightweight paper that has accidently folded wrong in its sketchbook and creased down the center can be used as test paper. Treating art supplies with care means that supplies can be used to their full potential. Waste is then minimized.
These are not really profound concepts on how to be the perfect environmentally friendly artist but some umbrella concepts that can be applied to any part of our lives and interests. I am essentially cutting down on waste and getting the most mileage out of my art supplies. It sounds simple, and it is. A little bit of creativity might be required on some occasions, but an artist can manage that.