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All About Great American Pastels

Pigment vs Dye
The two types of coloring agents used to color almost everything are pigments and dyes. They are not the same in many respects. For instance:

Dyes have an affinity for their ground; pigments do not. This means that dyes electrically attach themselves to Easter eggs, hair, textiles, etc., but pigments don't attach themselves to paper, canvas, board, etc.*
Dyes are soluble in their vehicle--they dissolve in water, oil or what have you. Pigments do not.
This means that pigments are not "absorbed through your skin". Dyes may be absorbed.
Lightfastness (i.e., tendency not to fade in light).
In general, pigments tend to be more lightfast than dyes.
Inexpensive, student grade paints and pastels may use a combination of pigments and dyes.
Great American Art Works uses only pigments with an ASTM lightfastness rating of I or Il.
* Mechanical attachment. Some pigments (aka "stainers", e.g., phthalo blue) may become"stuck" in fabric or paper due to the large size of the pigment particles.

Did you know...?
ALL mars colors (black, brown, violet, red, orange, yellow) are variations of rust? They are safe and lightfast. Great American Art Works uses a lot of mars pigments.

Caput Mortuum is a name used for mars violet in Medieval times. "Caput Mortuum" is Latin for "Dead Head". It was also called "Cardinal Purple", referring to a cardinal's robes. Part # 120.

"Sinopia" has a lot of meanings: it is a town in Turkey on the shore of the Black Sea. In the 1200's, Italian tradesmen found a deposit red earth there and brought some home. In Italy, "Sinopia" became:
1. a red crayon made of the pigment,
2. the red pounce bag used to outline frescoes,
3. the fresco cartoon in red.
Today, it is a pigment store in San Francisco, and our part # 100.

"Kermes" is an Arabic name for a red pigment made from groundup beetles. The name was transmogrified into French, German and English and is known today as "Carmine". Kermes is our part # 370. Carmine is # 620.

"Dragon's Blood" is a real pigment and is still available. It has been used for at least 2000 years but, alas, is not lightfast. It is made from the red sap found in trees in North Africa. Our
"Dragon's Blood" is a mars red. Part # 160.

"Cameroon". Isn't that a great combination of syllables? Part # 324.

And then, there's "Zanzibar". Part # 360.

"Bismarck" is Prussian blue. "Bismarck" was the only Prussian I know of. But…what about Frederick the Great. Part # 235.

"Sexan" violet is what you don't want the kids watching on TV. Part # 260.

"Celadon" is an ancient green Chinese porceline glaze. The name was used for a character in a French play in 1605. The actor wore a sash that was celadon green. Part # 355.

Warnings required by the
Consumer Products Safety Commission.

CAUTION!
Breathing pastel dust may be harmful.

CONTAINS:
Crystalline silica. Some colors may contain cadmium pigments.
Do not breathe dust from pastels. When dust occurs, use additional ventilation. To avoid exposure wear a smock and a properly fitted NIOSH-certified mask for dusts. When using, do not eat, drink or smoke. Wash hands and face innediately after use. Observe the same precautions when cleaning up.

CALIFORNIA Prop 65: WARNING!
This product contains a product known to the state of California to cause cancer, birth defects or other reproductive harm.

Great American Art Works products
Conform to ASTM-D4236

Best Practice Tips & Tricks of the Trade for Keeping a SAFE STUDIO Space:

It is relatively easy to stay safe when working with pigments in any medium: don't inhale or ingest them. And here are some tips to achieve that end:

Locate your studio away from your kitchen or dining room.
Avoid using carpet or rugs in your studio. Instead, install a flooring that has no texture or embossed patterns.
Do not sweep the floor with a broom. Use a wet/dry "shop-vac" in the wet mode. Add a few drops of dishwasher detergent to make the water wetter.
If you drop a pastel, sweep it up with a whisk broom and dust pan.
Do not bring food or drink into your studio. A hot drink will attract dust particles, some of which may be pigments.

Home is where our heart is.

Here are the ways we have committed to give back to our community:

A Town Center, Inc. - 501c3 Artist Cooperative
Anderson Artist Alley - Outdoor Gallery Space
The Walking Man Project - Public Art Initiative