Over recent years there has been a lot of discussion about the environmental safety of cadmium pigments. With this in mind, Winsor & Newton have developed cadmium-free pigments and introduced an exciting cadmium-free range of watercolours.
Find out more as Julie Collins tries out Winsor & Newton's Cadmium-Free Professional Watercolours.
What are cadmium pigments?
Cadmium pigments are much loved by artists due to their ability to deliver intensely bright, lightfast results. But cadmium is a heavy metal and although there is no globally harmonised view, there have been some concerns about its safety.
Cadmium pigments have been used by artists for many years; when I was an art student ‘the cadmiums’ were important pigments and were among the first colours that we had to buy.
Cadmium pigments are brilliantly coloured, have good permanence and excellent lightfastness. The main pigments form a family of yellow, orange and red.
Can I use cadmium pigments safely?
During the paint-making process the cadmium pigment is fused with sulphides and coated in the watercolour binder, a process that renders the cadmium insoluble in water, and therefore the human body.
We can’t absorb it and cadmium paints don’t give off any dust or fumes. The paint-making process makes cadmium paints safe.
However, as cadmium is a heavy metal you should not pour your dirty brush-cleaning water, or any unused paint on your palette, down the drain or onto the ground.
Doing so would introduce cadmium to the water system and possibly create problems such as cadmium being absorbed by crops. Instead, it’s recommend you use paper towels to soak up your dirty water and left-over paint on your mixing palette, then put them in your waste bin.
Environmental issues are increasingly important. In fact, there has been some talk about a complete ban on cadmium colours. This hasn’t happened so far but the good news is that you have a choice: continue to use cadmium paints or swap to Winsor & Newton’s cadmium-free watercolours.
Winsor & Newton Cadmium-Free Watercolour paints are part of their Professional range and are easily identified by the green band on the label.
SEE THE WINSOR & NEWTON PROFESSIONAL WATERCOLOUR RANGE HERE
Your questions about Cadmium answered
Q. Should I be concerned about cadmium?
A. Cadmium itself is a heavy metal. The new Winsor & Newton Cadmium-Free paints give you an alternative choice so you can decide which paint is right for you.
Q. What are the pigments used in Cadmium-Free paints?
A. The pigments cannot be disclosed as these are proprietary formulations. Only the highest quality pigments are used, not alternatives such as lakes or dyes.
Q. Why are these paints called Cadmium-Free and not Cadmium Hue?
A. Cadmium colours are very difficult to replicate. For many years attempts have been made by manufacturers to replace cadmiums with alternatives known as cadmium hues. Unfortunately, cadmium hues have not fully replicated the characteristics and performance of genuine cadmiums.
With the introduction of Cadmium-Free, Winsor & Newton is introducing the first paints that really give the same level of quality, permanence and lightfastness as their cadmium equivalent. To reflect this level of high quality, they have called them Cadmium-Free.
Q. Is Winsor & Newton going to discontinue cadmiums?
A. There are no plans to discontinue the existing Winsor & Newton cadmium colours at the moment. They believe that by offering Cadmium-Free colours they are giving you a choice: you decide what works best for you.
Top features
Not everyone will be familiar with cadmium-free paints, so here are some useful facts about Winsor & Newton Cadmium-Free Water Colours:
- Same great performance as genuine cadmium paint
- Made with the highest quality pigments
- Bright, fresh colours which mix beautifully with water
- Have a good level of transparency
- Good flow quality
They settle evenly on the paper and are a pleasure to paint with. I particularly like the way they work when laying down a watercolour wash.
The Cadmium-Free Watercolour range
The Winsor & Newton Cadmium-Free range includes the following colours:
- Cadmium-Free red
- Cadmium-Free red deep
- Cadmium-Free scarlet
- Cadmium-Free orange
- Cadmium-Free yellow pale
- Cadmium-Free yellow
- Cadmium-Free yellow deep
- Cadmium-Free lemon
- Cadmium-Free green pale
Painting with cadmium-free paints
For this painting I used Winsor & Newton and Cadmium-Free Watercolours in the following colours:
- Cadmium free lemon
- Cadmium free red
- Cobalt blue
- Permanent rose
I painted on Winsor & Newton CP watercolour paper block 140lb (300gsm), using Winsor & Newton Sceptre Gold II (101) sable/synthetic brushes, sizes 1, 4, 6 and 12 and a Winsor & Newton Fine Liner size 0.3.
To make the background wash I used all four colours.
The pot was made from Cadmium-Free red, Cadmium-Free lemon and permanent rose.
Adding Fine Liner
The Winsor & Newton Fine Liner pigment ink pens are excellent to use with watercolours.
As they are water resistant I painted first and then used the pens.
I tried sizes: 0.8, 0.3 and 0.1. They’re all excellent and my personal preference is the 0.3 as it produces a good fine line without being too delicate.
I advise you to try a few to see which you prefer. It’s also worth mentioning that they’re ‘non fading’ which is very important.
Top tip
You need to take care that your painting is thoroughly dry before you use them on top of the paint, as any dampness will ruin the pen.
For the painting above I used the following Winsor & Newton and Cadmium-Free Water Colours:
- Cadmium free orange
- Cadmium free red
- Cadmium free lemon
- Cerulean blue
- Quinacridone red
- Cobalt turquoise
I painted on a Winsor & Newton CP watercolour paper block 140lb (300gsm).
I also used Winsor & Newton Sceptre Gold II (101) sable/synthetic brushes, sizes 1, 4, 6 and 12.
Top tip
These are a good alternative to pure sable brushes, hold a decent amount of paint and have a good point at the end of the brush.
Do Cadmium-Free Watercolours mix with other watercolour paints?
Chart B, above, gives examples of mixing with Winsor & Newton Cadmium-Free colours.
I experimented by gradually adding one colour to a Cadmium-Free colour. The two aims were to see how well they mix with other colours, and to discover new colours by mixing.
I particularly liked the greys I made from the Cadmium-Free red and cerulean blue, and the deep orange made from the Cadmium-Free lemon and permanent rose.
I could have continued experimenting with the mixing all week, but unfortunately I don’t have the space here to show the results.
As always, I encourage you to try your own mixes as well as the mixes illustrated here.
Final thoughts
I am really impressed with this range of watercolours and how they mix with other colours in my palette, and it is great news that we now have a Cadmium-Free option.
Please note that the video and product images are taken from the Winsor & Newton website and Youtube channel.
Looking for cadmium-free oils? Paint a still life using W&N Cadmium-Free Artists' Oil Colour with Jenny Aitken by
About Julie Collins
Julie studied painting at the University of Reading. Her work is exhibited widely in the UK and she has received numerous awards. www.juliecollins.co.uk
Julie is an expert on colour mixing and you can purchase her book watercolour colour mixing guide in our online bookshop
