Oil Paint
Oil paint is a painting medium consisting of pigments dispersed in a drying oil as the binder.... View more
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Designing a lead white substitute?
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Designing a lead white substitute?
I have been studying with interest the discussions on the advantages of using lead white oil paint. However, I’m concerned about the potential risks of using lead white. (Long story!)
What are the characteristics of lead white that would need to be emulated in a lead white substitute using other pigments? From my studies into lead white, I think that its slight warmth, thixotropic behavior, semi-opacity, and the long-term strength/durability/lack of brittleness of the paint layer it produces are the major ones. Are there others?
A shorter way to ask the question is “What would be the characteristics of an ideal substitute for lead white oil paint?”
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4 Replies
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There are no pigments available at this time that offers all of these qualities otherwise we would recommend alternatives. The most essential quality is the self-healing properties of lead white on oil paint.
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Hi, I too am concerned about lead white because I have infants in the house. I use Lithopone by Rublev. It is more transparent than titanium and has low tinting strength like lead white. George says that it is a really good paint. Obviously, as George said nothing is an alternative for lead white.
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Lithopone is not a substitute for lead white. It is a good white, but cannot provide the same benefits as lead white. Lead white can be used safely, if kept away from children and pets, and your work area is kept clean. It does not require special handling. You should be doing these regardless of the paint you use.
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Overall, the concnerns about using lead white paint in a professional practice is overstated. With normal hygiene practices you can keep yourself safe from personal exposure to lead. Normal hygiene should be practiced in every studio regardless of whether you use lead white or not, because we cannot assume that all materials we use in our studios is safe and non-toxic. My view is that we should not assume that any thing is non-toxic and handle all materials with appropriate caution.
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