Even with the present craze of labeling every last ingredient and health hazard on common food and household items, many toxic artist materials fall outside of this jurisdiction. For about as long as artists have been using pigments to create works of art, they have been killing themselves in the process.
One of the most notorious artists, Vincent Van Gogh, was subject to spurts of madness (for lack of a better term) that have been contributed to everything as wide-ranging as syphillus to bipolar disorder to epilepsy and, of course, the obligatory accusation that the paints made him do it. Lead-based paints seem like one of the most likely culprits in this scenario. Lead poisoning is known to cause swelling of the eyes, which would cause the afflicted person to see halos around light...a technique that makes Van Gogh's paintings among the most unique and beautiful.
As of late, much of the lead once used to produce paints has been removed and replaced with less toxic ingredients. However, there is still a variety of hazardous chemicals present in paints, the most commonly known being cadmium pigments, a carcinogen. Less well known are the dangers present in the phthalo green and blue paints. During the manufacturing process of phatholcyanine, a chemical known Polychlorinated Biphenyl, or PCB is produced. Due to the expense of removing this toxic chemical, it is most commonly done only when the phthalocyanine is going to be used as a pigment for cosmetics. As well as being a carcinogen, PCB may cause dangerous alterations to the immune system, reproductive system, nervous system, and endocrine system. More specific side effects include poor short-term memory, hindered visual recognition, a decrease in thyroid hormone levels, a reduction in birth weight of the fetus in pregnant women, and an increased risk for contracting the Epstein-Barr virus. Pregnant women should be particularly cautious, because Phthalo Green also contains copper which can cause miscarriages. PCB is less of a risk in present day paints, because the US government has restricted the sale of products that contain PCB, including products that are imported from other countries. However, not all countries have established a ruling against PCB and it is a possibility that some Pthalo paints may still contain this toxin.
The jury is still out on certain paints, especially those made up of synthetic organic compounds, most of which are claimed to be safe yet whose toxicity levels have not been tested. Quinacridone Red is a synthetic organic paint which is said to be safe. Lithol Red, also a synthetic organic paint, has proven to be a carcinogen.
No dry pigment of any kind is 100 percent safe, as the dust particles are easily inhaled and adversly affect the respiratory system. Further, it is particularly hard to remove all traces of pigment dust from the area that they are used in, and may travel through the house through the air (albiet in trace amounts...there is no need to get too alarmed about this fact). A way of protecting against harming you lungs and air passageways would be to make sure that you contain your use of dry pigments such as paint pigments and chalk pastels to one area and to use a dust mask while working with them.
http://www.trueart.info/art_hardware.htm
http://www.epa.gov/pcb/pubs/effects.htm
http://www.epa.gov/pcb/pubs/about.htm
http://www.ci.tucson.az.us/arthazards/paint1.html
www.eggtempera.com/toxicity.html
Thursday, February 28, 2008
Thursday, February 21, 2008
Color Compositions
Using the color wheel to distinguish nine squares of the same design was a tedious process of color mixing and putting the color down with one of the smallest brushes I have to get straighter lines. It was both a blinding and nauseating experience. I chose to compose something of entirely geometric shapes, using only overlapping rectangles and squares to make an abstract design.
The effect of the varying colors combined with all of the tiny squares gives each tile a digitized look that is reminiscent of the pixels making up a computer image. I think that it is a pretty cool, striking look, and was probably worth the obscene amount of time that I put into it. It is even more evident in tiles that have an interplay of extreme lights and darks. The contrast makes the pattern more obvious and achieves the goal of cutting the tile into larger shapes.
I also like the way that the paint became textured after layering it to make the color more opaque. The texture is rather incongruent with the harsh right angles and straight lines, adding another aspect of interest.
One problem that I have with the project is the analogous colors. They don't achieve the same contrast as the monochrome and complimentary tiles, probably due to the fact that they can't be found on the color wheel. They are also more toned down colors; the blues and greens like those of a Mediterranean ocean and the browns of a rich, earth dirt. I find it interesting that the differing colors can either add to a design or detract from it.
The effect of the varying colors combined with all of the tiny squares gives each tile a digitized look that is reminiscent of the pixels making up a computer image. I think that it is a pretty cool, striking look, and was probably worth the obscene amount of time that I put into it. It is even more evident in tiles that have an interplay of extreme lights and darks. The contrast makes the pattern more obvious and achieves the goal of cutting the tile into larger shapes.
I also like the way that the paint became textured after layering it to make the color more opaque. The texture is rather incongruent with the harsh right angles and straight lines, adding another aspect of interest.
One problem that I have with the project is the analogous colors. They don't achieve the same contrast as the monochrome and complimentary tiles, probably due to the fact that they can't be found on the color wheel. They are also more toned down colors; the blues and greens like those of a Mediterranean ocean and the browns of a rich, earth dirt. I find it interesting that the differing colors can either add to a design or detract from it.
Take once daily on an empty stomach
Color seems like it would be completely unnecessary when it comes to something as small and simple as a the little pills that we swallow. However, once you take a moment to think about how medication permeates just about every aspect of American life, the details of those pillls begins to take on a whole new importance...especially if you happen to be taking more than one medication, which is becoming more and more commonplace as technology progresses.
Images of these pills assault you from every angle: magazine pages, newspaper blurbs, 30-second clips on the television and even blown up to a monsterous size and displayed on a billboard. Taking pills has become a cultural norm, whether it is something as innocent as a daily vitamin or to treat prevent much more grave symptoms such as the rejection of an organ in a transplant recipient. Advertising agencies along with pharmaceutical laboratories have capatilized on societies acceptance of pills as a cure-all, and to make them even more attractive they often come in an assortment of bright candy colors which appeal to the child in all of us.
Of course, aside from advertising and memory related purposes, the color of our pills seems to have a pronounced psychological influence, perhaps even extending to the point where the effectiveness of the pill may be compromised by an ill-suited color. If you are skeptical. Try imagining "fire red capsules for acid reflux or murky bile green for nausea." A pill that is a visual representative of the distasteful symptom that a person is experiencing does not indicate relief of that symptom. If a person takes a pill that they do not believe will work, or that they believe will not work well, the person will have less relief than they should, regardless of how biologically well the chemicals in the pill should treat the symptoms. Treatments are considerably more effective when the colors of the pills are in accordance with the feeling that they are supposed to promote. A soothing pale blue is often the color of choice for sleeping pills, and the earthy green of Excedrin capsules seems to suggest tranquility and relief from pain.
All extraneous information and quotes take from :
"Taking the Color of Medications Seriously
Pharmaceutical Color – A New Frontier!"
www.colormatters.com/body_pills.html
Images of these pills assault you from every angle: magazine pages, newspaper blurbs, 30-second clips on the television and even blown up to a monsterous size and displayed on a billboard. Taking pills has become a cultural norm, whether it is something as innocent as a daily vitamin or to treat prevent much more grave symptoms such as the rejection of an organ in a transplant recipient. Advertising agencies along with pharmaceutical laboratories have capatilized on societies acceptance of pills as a cure-all, and to make them even more attractive they often come in an assortment of bright candy colors which appeal to the child in all of us.
Of course, aside from advertising and memory related purposes, the color of our pills seems to have a pronounced psychological influence, perhaps even extending to the point where the effectiveness of the pill may be compromised by an ill-suited color. If you are skeptical. Try imagining "fire red capsules for acid reflux or murky bile green for nausea." A pill that is a visual representative of the distasteful symptom that a person is experiencing does not indicate relief of that symptom. If a person takes a pill that they do not believe will work, or that they believe will not work well, the person will have less relief than they should, regardless of how biologically well the chemicals in the pill should treat the symptoms. Treatments are considerably more effective when the colors of the pills are in accordance with the feeling that they are supposed to promote. A soothing pale blue is often the color of choice for sleeping pills, and the earthy green of Excedrin capsules seems to suggest tranquility and relief from pain.
All extraneous information and quotes take from :
"Taking the Color of Medications Seriously
Pharmaceutical Color – A New Frontier!"
www.colormatters.com/body_pills.html
Wednesday, February 13, 2008
On Ghosts
It strikes me as a good day to contemplate the supernatural: the sky overcast, the streets slick with rain, and the faint whistle of wind outside my apartment window. Perhaps the most notable relation ghosts have to color is that such apparations often (if not always) are described as appearing either white or black. They can be opaque, transparent, mist-like, having a shape that merely suggests the human figure, or fully formed and detailed images.
It does not matter whether the account is given by the person who saw the ghost or by a friend-of-a-friend, passing on the story in one of the rawest forms of oral tradition...the color never varies between white and black.
It's likely that this has to do with the stereotypes of white and black that strongly persist in modern North American culture. Women apparitions are the ones often appearing in white; usually clothed in a white gown of some kind, tragically killed on their prom night, wedding day, or before their debutante ball. Men who held some kind of power during their lifetime: high-ranking soldiers, judges, or barons take the form of black mists, angered by those who dare enter their house and otherwise intrude upon their property.
Black and white are colors associated with mystery and intrigue as much as they represent evil and innocence. Few people can tell you the true definition of either white or black. Even if you choose to consult different color theories upon the matter, each one seems to disagree with the other. Are they the presence of all colors? The absence or absorbtion of all light? It may be for this reason that black and white have been inextricably linked with the unknown, the ethereal. Certainly there are other colors that could also do the duty of representing these spirits: green is often associated with power, greed and force, purple denotes things of a spiritual nature, and it seems more likely that red would be the color of choice for those who met a violent and untimely death. Still, black and white elude definition in all but the wildest depths of our imaginations and persists to manifest as otherworldly forms.
It does not matter whether the account is given by the person who saw the ghost or by a friend-of-a-friend, passing on the story in one of the rawest forms of oral tradition...the color never varies between white and black.
It's likely that this has to do with the stereotypes of white and black that strongly persist in modern North American culture. Women apparitions are the ones often appearing in white; usually clothed in a white gown of some kind, tragically killed on their prom night, wedding day, or before their debutante ball. Men who held some kind of power during their lifetime: high-ranking soldiers, judges, or barons take the form of black mists, angered by those who dare enter their house and otherwise intrude upon their property.
Black and white are colors associated with mystery and intrigue as much as they represent evil and innocence. Few people can tell you the true definition of either white or black. Even if you choose to consult different color theories upon the matter, each one seems to disagree with the other. Are they the presence of all colors? The absence or absorbtion of all light? It may be for this reason that black and white have been inextricably linked with the unknown, the ethereal. Certainly there are other colors that could also do the duty of representing these spirits: green is often associated with power, greed and force, purple denotes things of a spiritual nature, and it seems more likely that red would be the color of choice for those who met a violent and untimely death. Still, black and white elude definition in all but the wildest depths of our imaginations and persists to manifest as otherworldly forms.
Saturday, February 2, 2008
Playing Favorites
What is your favorite color?
That is one of the most common questions that people ask. It is a relatively safe, simple inquiry throught which we attempt to get a better grasp of the person that we happen to be stuck with.
Blue seems to an almost equally common answer. Blue is used in many advertisements, with the general purpose of luring in and creating soothing, positive associations within the person that is looking. However, blue is also used in commercials for depression treating drugs to impress upon the viewer feelings of cold, bleakness, and despair. I cannot get past my own prejudices against the color blue; I find it to be distasteful in almost every shade unless mixed with another color.
Blue has come to symbolize mediocrity: a color for someone with no imagination and without the ability to look anywhere but skyward, ignoring all of the other wonderful colors around them.
Green is my color of choice. When I think of green I am always reminded of spring, when everything is more alive. Green always calls to mind the new shoots of grass, forests thick with leaves, and the running water of the river I grew up near. It also brings to mind slightly more incongruent and abstract things: new possibilites, laughter, and joy. Green surpasses the description afforded to colors. It is a scent, a taste, a feeling, a specific sound (like that of music, rain, and birds chirping).
In choosing our favorite, we are all making a small declaration about which color causes us this synesthesia; capturing all of our senses in the most positive of ways.
That is one of the most common questions that people ask. It is a relatively safe, simple inquiry throught which we attempt to get a better grasp of the person that we happen to be stuck with.
Blue seems to an almost equally common answer. Blue is used in many advertisements, with the general purpose of luring in and creating soothing, positive associations within the person that is looking. However, blue is also used in commercials for depression treating drugs to impress upon the viewer feelings of cold, bleakness, and despair. I cannot get past my own prejudices against the color blue; I find it to be distasteful in almost every shade unless mixed with another color.
Blue has come to symbolize mediocrity: a color for someone with no imagination and without the ability to look anywhere but skyward, ignoring all of the other wonderful colors around them.
Green is my color of choice. When I think of green I am always reminded of spring, when everything is more alive. Green always calls to mind the new shoots of grass, forests thick with leaves, and the running water of the river I grew up near. It also brings to mind slightly more incongruent and abstract things: new possibilites, laughter, and joy. Green surpasses the description afforded to colors. It is a scent, a taste, a feeling, a specific sound (like that of music, rain, and birds chirping).
In choosing our favorite, we are all making a small declaration about which color causes us this synesthesia; capturing all of our senses in the most positive of ways.
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