DO WE USE PAINTBRUSHES AT THE COST OF KILLING ANIMALS?
Is animal cruelty the price you are paying for your artistic expression? Does your artistic freedom mean deprivation of freedom of life to other living creatures?
In 1991, Schedule IV of the Indian Wildlife Protection Act made the killing of mongoose and the use of mongoose products illegal. Despite the ban, most paint brush manufacturers, traders, and retailers in India continue to make brushes in mongoose hair.
What we hear as consumers is natural hair paintbrushes, but we don’t really look into what source is that natural hair brush is coming from. It takes nearly 25 mongooses to gather a kilogram of their hair. Some of the big art supply brands have been relying on them to make brushes for more than over 50 years now.
According to a study in 2019 around 100,000 mongooses were killed to make paintbrushes every year. The government has taken some measures and actions to stop this and the mongoose species have been upgraded to Part II of Schedule II of the Wildlife (Protection ) Act of 1972.
However, the mongoose is not the only victim of animal cruelty, there are countless industries that commit to animal abuse for the purpose of mere aesthetics such as the entertainment industry, the cosmetics industry, the fast fashion and clothing industry, and so on.
In the years to come it is inevitably crucial for us to realize and question the true sense of values, ethics, and conscience. There is certainly no excuse for the exploitation and crimes committed against living creatures. Accessing where we went wrong is a big stride, but a bigger stride to take is to find sustainable and cruelty-free products.
WHAT AS ARTISTS AND CONSUMERS OF PAINTBRUSHES DO TO PREVENT THIS?
- We always have a choice to pick vegan brushes like synthetic brushes made of nylon, rayon, and other synthetics.
- We could go a little more eco-friendly and buy eco-friendly, animal cruelty-free brushes.
- We could avoid the buying of animal hair brushes and that might stop its market thereby stopping production.
WHERE THERE IS A WILL, THERE IS ALWAYS A WAY!
We could always find harmless and sustainable ways to pick products to use. Our whole lifestyle and its impact on this world revolves around how we make each choice . We could always choose the best option with our best intentions to make the world and our living a better place. It does not take much effort, it is simply a choice.
WHAT ARE SOME OF THE OTHER SUSTAINABLE AND ECO-FRIENDLY ART CHOICES?
1. We can always go for gummed tapes that are biodegradable instead of cello tapes.
2. We could go for recycled paper.
3. We could opt for water-based paints, plant- and mineral-based pigments, and other nontoxic options. You can find water-soluble, also known as water-miscible, oil paints.
4. Pencils and brushes with wooden shafts rather than plastics.
There are numerous ways !!!
It is therefore important we take responsibility for our choices and wisely contribute to the world for good.
