Artist Trading Cards Project

This is the mess my studio is in currently! I decided that my mixed media class should do an artist trading card swap for Christmas, however, everyone was way too busy to participate with the holidays looming. So we decided to move the swap to our first day back in class, which is Monday. I have been working all week on these little gems, and am having a lot of fun. At first I have to admit that my own personal attitude wasn't that great -I wanted the class to experience this, but I am realizing more and more that I am learning a lot myself while I am exploring. Taking each card and watching the theme for each one developing, and then the hunt for the 'perfect' embellishment! I only have to make 16, but currently have lots more than that -I will choose my favorite 16 to share with the class.

These are a few of my favorites so far. I have been enjoying using metal embellishments, brads, cutouts, rubber stamps, homemade stamps and found images (handy that we have just decided to part company with 5 years of old National Geographics, which I have been going through to pull out any interesting things to add to my collage stash). I also enjoy finding imagery in abstract painting starts and then developing them (see card #3 "Mother" which is part of an abstract start using acrylic inks on Yupo -it also has a punched gold bird backed with blue collage paper and a collaged word). Card #1 ("Father") has a monoprinted background, found images of man and a fish, and copper sheeting which I embossed and attached with brads, and bits of leftover copper I wound into spirals and glued on. Card #2 ("Artist") has a monoprinted background, an image transfer of me as a child, rubber stamped leaf design and collaged text. Card #4 ("Stone Angel") has a monoprinted background, found image of an angel and a silver metal ornament attached with a brad.
Enjoy!