Many people are familiar with the term cruelty-free; but what does it mean for a watercolour artist? If you’re vegan, vegetarian, or just want to avoid animal products, you probably know to avoid animal hair brushes in favour of synthetics.

But did you know that animal products can also be found in paper, and paint? Papers may contain gelatin, paints could have ox-gall, bone char or carmine. Natural paint brushes are made with the hair from animal pelts, including weasels, squirrels, badgers, pigs or goats.

In this post, I’ll show you what to look out for, and give you my all-time favourite vegan art supplies. I’ve also flagged some pigments that you should avoid, and recommended some manufactures who are known for using synthetic alternatives.

Paint Brushes

Animal Products in Traditional Brushes

Animals are typically bred for their fur, and living conditions can vary greatly. The brush industry purchases pelts from the fur industry, and many of the same ethical concerns that impact the fashion industry will also impact artists using natural hair brushes.

The Difference between Synthetic and Natural Hair

Performance

Synthetic brushes tend to be stiffer than natural hair brushes and, as they are made from plastic, they are generally less absorbent than animal hair alternatives. However, the technology behind them has come on in leaps and bounds, and now many synthetics are excellent brushes in their own right.

an ecological consideration

Brands that are focused on the environmental impact use green energy to make their products, use recyclable packaging, and many have turned to sustainability sourced wood sourced from reforestation programs for their handles. They aim for brushes with a long lifespan, in order to reduce polluting waste. However, it is important to note that all synthetic filaments are made from types of plastic, and truly biodegradable synthetic filaments are not common yet.

Lifespan

Another significant difference between synthetic and natural hair brushes is their lifespan. Well cared for natural hair brushes can last decades. Much loved synthetic brushes have a much shorter life of 3 – 5 years, due to splaying and shedding.

Cost

Synthetic brushes are cheaper on average than natural brushes. On average, synthetic brushes are 30 – 70% less expensive!

The Best Synthetic Brushes

My Favourites

I prefer softer brushes, and my all-time favourite synthetic brushes are dreamily springy. I would recommend:

Watercolour Paints

Animal Products in Traditional Paints

Watercolours can be made with a few parts; including a binder, pigment, dispersant and humectants. Of those parts, pigments, dispersants and humectants can be made from products derived from animals.

What to Look Out For

Paint Brands containing Honey and / or Ox Gall

Non-Vegan Pigments

Even if the binder is synthetic, some pigments are inherently animal-unfriendly. Ivory/Bone Black (PBk9) is traditionally made from charred bones. Genuine Sepia is made from squid ink. Indian Ink uses crushed bugs. Bone Black might be easy to spot, but it might be mixed in other paints which are less obvious: for example, Ivory Black could be used to help mix a different colour which could be branded as Neutral Tint or Brown Oxide.

Vegan Paints

The following paints are fully synthetic. Any exceptions will appear in the bracket (most exceptions contain PBk9, a pigment made from charred bones).

Every effort has been made to confirm these formulas, as of April 2024. However, paint formulas can change, so please use this as a guide rather than a guarantee. If any formulas have changed, please do let me know and I will make sure to update this list.

Paint Brands	Non-Vegan Exceptions to the Range
Daniel Smith	Payne’s Grey, Joseph Z’s Neutral Grey, Sepia & Ivory Black
Daler-Rowney’s Watercolour Paints	Bone Black
DaVinci Artists’ Permanent Watercolours
Golden QoR	Ivory Black, Jenkins Green, Neutral Grey 2, Neutral Grey 3, Neutral Grey 4, Neutral Grey 5, Neutral Grey 6, Neutral Grey 7, Neutral Grey 8, Prussian Blue Hue and Terre Verte Hue *** NOTE: Golden does not use ox gall, or test its products on animals, it does use raw materials that have been tested on animals due to global regulations on potential toxicity.
Grumbacher Academy	Cerulean Blue Hue, Davy’s Grey, Hooker’s Green Light Hue, Ivory Black
Holbein	Ivory Black*
Ken Bromley	Translucent Grey, Payne’s Grey Blue Shade, Payne’s Grey Dark, Warm Sepia, Lamp Black
Kuretake Gansai Tambi Watercolours
Lukas 1862
Maimeri Blu	Van Dyck Brown, Payne’s Grey, Sepia, Ivory Black
Old Holland	Scheveningen Warm Grey, Indigo Extra, Payne’s Grey, Sepia Extra, Warm Special Extra, Ivory Black
Rembrandt	Ivory Black & Lamp Black
Schmincke Akademie Aquarell Student Line.	Vegan since 2013. *** NOTE: the student line is vegan; the professional line contains ox gall.
ShinHan PWC	Ivory Black
Utrecht	Ivory Black, Payne’s Grey
White Nights
Winsor & Newton’s Cotman	Ivory Black, Raw Umber and Viridian *** NOTE: This is different to Winsor & Newton’s Professional Range. Everything in the ‘Winsor & Newton Complete Artists’ Watercolour’ range contains Ox Gall.

The Best Vegan Paint Sets

Watercolour Paper

Animal Products in Traditional Watercolour Paper

Watercolour papers can be made from rag, cotton or wood pulp (or a hybrid mix!). Most artists consider 100% cotton to be the best paper. However, papers are frequently treated with something called ‘sizing’, in order to improve their performance.

Traditionally, sizing was made from animal gelatine, and was either added into the pulp itself (internal sizing), or was brushed on top of a finished sheet (external sizing).

Common Papers that use Gelatine Sizing

• Arches
• St Cuthbert’s Mill
• Fabriano; Secolo XVIII, Romo and Esportazione papers
• Winsor & Newton; Cotman Papers
• Winsor & Newton; Saunder’s Waterford
• Winsor & Newton; Artists’ Water Colour Paper
• Royal Talens; Rembrandt, 100% Cotton Watercolour paper

The Best Animal-Free Watercolour Paper

my favourites

The following papers use synthetic sizing:

* Some papers from this brand contain animal gelatine. Avoid Secolo XIII, Romo, and Esportazione.
** As above, avoid 500 series Gemini.

alternatives

• Canson; Heritage, Montval
• Heritage
• Daler-Rowney (except for The Langton Prestige and Murano papers from this brand, both of which contain gelatine sizing)

Masking Fluid

Animal Products in Traditional Masking Fluid

Masking Fluid (also known as liquid frisket) is made from latex. While latex itself comes from rubber trees, some formulas do use animal derived products, including:

• casein (milk protein) as a binder
• animal-derived stabilisers
• animal-based pigments (in some tinted versions)
• Some manufacturers also have general animal testing policies.

Manufacturer’s Links:

• Winsor and Newton (Cotman and Professional Lines): Info PDF
• Daniel Smith: Statement
• Daler-Rowney: Scroll down for ‘Do You Test on Animals or use Animal-derived ingredients?’