What are Artist Trading Cards? Up until a few days ago, I'd never heard of them. In a nutshell, they are miniature works of art that are traded amongst people who produce the art. The only requirement is that they must be 2.5" x 3.5" in height and width and that they are traded, not sold.
Check out Wikipedia for a full explanation.
As I've discovered, there is a huge Internet swap thing going on with these things. I found a swap where the theme is "faces" and since I love painting faces, I had to jump on the bandwagon. So now I have committed myself to producing four cards to send to two total strangers. They have to be in the mail by November 26th.
My concern is that I am a newbie and that the recipients of my cards won't be all that impressed. Folks are making some spectacular cards with all sorts of mixed media. I didn't want to go and buy a lot of new materials and because there is no restriction on the materials that can be used for the cards, I thought to myself, "what do I have on hand that I could use?" I have fabric, and lots of it. My cards will be done in cotton using some fancy stitching on my sewing machine.
Pictured above is my very first Artist Trading Card (ATC). The background is made from one of the little cotton samplers I posted about yesterday. The face is rubber stamped on muslin and stitched to the card. The back, which I did not photograph, is the same fabric as the front and attached is a little tag showing my name and Email address. Both front and back pieces were reinforced with fusible interfacing to give it some rigidity. The colours in the background, which remind of African fabrics, and the African mask face seem like they belong together.
I think I like it but I'm not sure. It seems a bit too simple (compared to some I've seen). Yet I don't want to overdo it. It needs a little something more. Some beads or buttons maybe.
While I decide about this one, the next one I'm working on will feature a face hand painted by me. This is going to be interesting as there isn't much room on these tiny cards.
3 comments:
I like it =] I'm having the same "fun" (trouble?) with starting this up, because I really don't want to go out and buy a bunch of new stuff for a new art thing....I have way too much already (that's my husband talking, doncha know ;).
I like the idea of using fabric! I have tons of that, I'll have to try it =] I really like the face you've put on this ATC; it fits really well with the fabric, & the whole thing almost has a tribal feel to it. I think if I were to add anything to it (and I don't think it NEEDS it), it would be something simple & raw, like a line of twine.
Did you make the face stamp yourself?
Thanks, Kyla Nicole. I've decided to leave it as is.
I didn't make this face stamp but I am going to start carving my own stamps.
Aren't ATCs a fun way to combine needle, thread, cloth, paper, metal, buttons, beads,... oh the mixture is endless. Have fun, it is quite an addiction I'd say. :) ~Monica
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