Looking to collect (ACT's/ACEO's maybe?)

Buceph

I have fond memories of collecting things as a kid, Garbage Pail Kid stickers when I was four or five, football stickers when I was 7 to 10, brief periods in between with call cards and Pogs, and then Magic: The Gathering cards when I was a teenager. I loved doing it, I loved looking at them, talking about them and I loved buying them (I suppose that's why I'm a truly modern consumer.) I have a few hobbies (tabletop gaming, beer and photography) but to properly collect things associated with that is expensive: old mint games are almost impossible to find, models and the like cost about a tenner a go, beer is something I consume anyway but I'd have nowhere to store the bottles and I don't like the idea of peeling labels, photography is the most interesting one in terms of collection but good photographers generally have great knowledge of their worth or at least an understanding they can sell few photos at relatively high prices. So a lot of that seems out to me.

I went looking at the Wiki page on collecting, and their list of things that are collected. I don't really have an interest in the natural world stuff, stamps, currency and coins are either too expensive or those that aren't don't hold an aesthetic or visceral value for me. And most of the rest seemed either impractical or boring (to me anyway.)

Really, my childhood love was for stickers or cards, and they're practical as well. So one thing that did catch my eye was artist trading cards/art card editions and originals. So I fired up ebay and did a look. Most sellers seemed to be American and most cards were incredibly naff. They were either terrible attempts at emulating different artistic styles or even worse: pictures of kittens, and anime girls.

So I'm wondering if anyone has heard of this kind of collecting? I like the idea of craft and art going into something (which is why I'd ideally like to collect photos, I spend long enough looking at them online.) I like the idea of getting something of quality. I'd just like to learn more about the ACT/ACEO world from non-involved parties before I get obsessed with it.

Jellybaby1

I was hoping to get into making ATC's some time in the future, but I'm afraid they might be 'naff' so I'm a bit nervous. They are miniature works of art which are traded freely between ATC artists. They are never bought or sold and there are strict rules regarding the size. What an artist creates on the card is entirely up to them, whether it's naff or not, and (I believe) any medium the artist wishes can also be used i.e. paper, ink, paint, fibres, fabric etc. There are lots of ATC swaps in the USA, Ireland hasn't taken it to her heart yet, probably because there is absolutely no profit in it.

On the other hand if you check out ebay or etsy you may find ACEOs which are actually sold, again there are the rules for size. Personally I don't know what about an ATC is not ACEO, or what about an ACEO is not ATC. I'd love to know the difference.

You may also find Mail Art (or Postal Art) of interest. I've never been involved but you could google it in google images to see what it looks like. Good luck in your search.

Buceph

Cheers jellybaby. That's a really helpful post. What was best but also most enfuriating about it was that you talk about a "community of artists" sharing their stuff. I'm not creative with pen and paper (or anything similar) so I wouldn't be part of that aspect of the community. I'd just love to be able to collect really cool images at a price I can afford. And this sounded perfect for that. I looked through a few artist trading card websites and I thought while a lot of things didn't appeal to me (naff pictures of kittens (although I'm sure a cat fan would love them (I'm a doggy person :pac:))) there were actually some quite striking pictures in there.

Really, I'm just trying to do my due diligence on the industry before I get a Visa Debit Card. But also I'm wondering about this whole trading part. Why do people only trade for other works? Is it because they don't want to be taken advantage of? Is it because they fear the commercialisation of their work? Or is it because they can feel more a part of a community through trades? Because none of that is exclusive to a "trading" pastime. I raised this in the photo forum that I just linked here (to back up my wild thoughts,) wouldn't it be cool if people could just sell their art so people could appreciate their art? And it could be a symbotic relationship between consumer and creator? If it does get really popular it's just a matter of filtering signal to noise (no great feat, I know.) It's just that as a not very artistic person, I don't want to be left out of a really creative community.

Edit: Actually, Jelly! <EDIT> Purely as a consumer and as having no inclination to make one myself, as no matter what anyway says, I definitely can't sing, and I definitely can't paint/collage/calligraphy thing (although I could print a photo.)

Sorry Buceph but no buying or selling is permitted on the forum,all sales and want lists must go through www.adverts.ie .A link to the advert can then be posted here on the thread which is permitted.Alternatively a member can be contacted by P.M. but boards.ie are not responsible for any deals done this way.If unsure please read our forum charter here .Moderator

Jellybaby1

I smiled when I read your offer to buy something I might make & you haven't seen.:D Oh dear, this has upset our Mod. I won’t be offering my ‘art’ yet as I’ve a lot on my plate at the moment but at some stage I will give it a go. I’ve got a pile of cards already cut waiting for some inspiration, which is missing at present unfortunately.

Funnily enough, this ATC, http://www.etsy.com/listing/22885430/the-throne-original-atc-free-shipping is marked ‘sold’ on Etsy, so it seems some are selling theirs so you could buy them and then trade, or even sell!

If you are like me, not very arty, then you could try a collage using bits and pieces from magazines or junk mail, I’ve seen that done somewhere online. In the meantime, check these sites below. ATC artists would use craft rubber stamps to add words or images, but you can type something up on computer and print it out, add a piece of ribbon, fabric flowers, or paper flowers, a little stick-on gem, or a shape punched out with a craft punch. Remember the back of the cards have to have certain information. Name of artist, date, number and title. If you made ten or twelve of a design you would number them 1/10, 2/10, and so on. It might be a challenge if you’ve never done this kind of thing before but as they say, practice makes perfect. Maybe I’ll even take my own advice sometime soon.:rolleyes: My suggestion to you is to keep researching on the internet and read as much as you can about them. There are online swaps in the US, you just need to track ‘em down.

http://www.amazon.com/Artist-Trading-Card-Workshop-Collect/dp/1581808488
http://cedarseed-fire.blogspot.com/2003/03/art-in-your-pocket.html
http://www.art-cards.org/
http://www.altered-art.net/make-artist-trading-cards-3.html
http://b-muse.com/Collage-Techniques-bkgds.HTM
http://alteredbits.com/

and of course, don’t forget Youtube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_k4OJFbuPfk

and this brilliant one looks a right mess to begin with, but trust me, stay with it until the end:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RKMRjj4DKPI

Jellybaby1

Just a quick P.S. The artist on this site

http://www.amylyn-bihrle.com/

is selling hand painted ACEO's for $45.00. It might spur us on if we thought we could get $45.00 for a 2.5 x 3.5 inches piece of work. Check out her cats on her blog (definitely not naff!!)

http://bihrle.blogspot.com/