Artist Trading Cards -- Winter

Artists like to try new techniques. They always want to be creating. At the Wellington Art Society, I introduced the group to Artist Trading Cards. ATCs are a great way to try a new technique and to see what others are doing. They are 2 1/2" x 3 1/2" mini works of art. Because they are small, it's easy to try something new. And because you are trading them with others, and making one for everyone, you have a chance to perfect that technique. Especially when you're making about a dozen. ATCs are usually done on paper or cardstock, but I've seen them made on acrylic, metal, and fabric. The great part is that you can use whatever you want. And embellish them any way you want. There is no judgment, because it's not art you're trying to sell. You are just trading them with other artists. You make one for them and they give you one in return. In the end, you get a pretty nice collection of ATCs, showcasing the artwork of your friends.

We occasionally meet to trade ATCs. We usually pick a theme for the cards, simply to help you get some ideas rolling. And we always go out to dinner to do our trading. It's a nice excuse to get together for a social night out. Last week we traded ATCs with a Winter theme. We stretch that theme a bit, since we've been getting mostly 80-degree weather this Winter in Florida. We can still dream of snowmen and snowflakes through our art.

Marie Lentine layers many papers and words in a nice collage technique. She collects inspirational words and goes through her files to see which words work best.

Members' Night Out

A few of us got together to have dinner and trade Artist Trading Cards. ATCs are small, 2 1/2" x 3 1/2" original works of art. Every few months, we pick a theme, and create some ATCs to trade with one another. It's a nice excuse to get together socially away from our formal meetings. Our latest get together was April 18 at Dean Anthony's Restaurant in Wellington. After walking in and discovering that Wednesday is karaoke night, we moved to the outside tables, where we had a nice dinner in our beautiful, mild Spring weather.

What's an ATC?

For many of you artists out there, you know exactly what it is. ATC stands for Artist Trading Card. I don't know who invented it, but I'm guessing it was a very generous artist. You see, Artist Trading Cards are small works of art, 2 1/2" x 3 1/2" (the size of a playing card). The idea is to make a small piece of art and trade it with another artist. No money changes hands. You are giving your art to another, but then you are getting one of theirs in return.

Sometimes they are traded in organized swaps. If a dozen artists say they're going to trade, then you need to make a dozen ATCs to have to trade.

Sometimes you trade in person, and sometimes you trade through the mail. You may not ever meet the artist, but it sure is fun when you receive that package in the mail and you know it's someone's wonderful art. An artist may choose to be a host or hostess of a swap. Usually that means that all of the ATCs will be mailed to her home. She then splits them up so everyone gets one of each, and mails them back to each artist with the postage they have provided. At the Wellington Art Society, we go out to dinner together to swap. We get an idea of how many people are coming, and then we email everyone so they know how many to make. There are about 20 of us in the group who make ATCs, and 8-12 will participate in any given swap. Our latest swap/dinner was held at I'm Greek Today in Royal Palm Beach.

We choose a theme for our swaps. This time, the theme was Dreams.

Sometimes ATCs are interactive. They have some movement, an insert, a puzzle. This next one shows someone dreaming of inner peace.

This one uses a song lyric as inspiration. Who can remember The Eurhythmics singing "Sweet Dreams are Made of This" back in the 80's? I brought it forward to this decade and crafted the latest trendy treat, a cupcake.

This artist looked into the meanings of dreams. That generated a lively conversation over dinner.

Who hasn't at one time dreamed of flying?

We do 3 - 4 ATC dinners per year. We haven't scheduled the next one yet. Do you have any suggestion for a theme?