ATC: Artist Trading Cards

I've heard about these cards before, but I always dismissed them as something I wasn't interested in.  I didn't think they were "serious" art, or something like that.  Well, for my online course this summer, I had to complete a little set of 5 as preparation for a lesson plan. Instead of just trading the cards among the students, we are receiving contact information for a pen-pal in GERMANY!  Now anyone who knows me knows how much I like to stay in touch via old fashioned snail mail. There is simply nothing like the little jolt of joy I get when I find a handwritten note from a friend in my mailbox. My mother met my stepfather this way--- through a thank-you note!

Traditions: Hike the Blue Ridge Parkway

When I was in middle school my family took a trip to the beach and I met a friend in the pool on the last day of our trip. We are still in touch after years of writing pen-pal letters and I really think I might get to see her again this August.  We used to decorate our envelopes like crazy-- we made them look like all kinds of things. I wish I still had all those envelopes somewhere, but I wasn't as organized when I was young.  Guess what... my pen pal is a teacher in Wilmington now.  How ironic is that?  I should have known a long time ago that I was meant for this kind of thing.

Stereotype:  Fat American Tourist in a Tacky Suit

So here are my first artist trading cards.  For my class, we had to depict our region, a famous local person/celeb, something from history, a tradition and a stereotype.  Here's what I came up with.  Enjoy!

History: American Indian Figures

My Region:  The South-- lightning bugs in a jelly jar

Local Celeb: The Wright Brothers, N.C. First in Flight 

(I'm not really with-it when it comes to celebrities, so I chose historical celebs)

I can't wait to see what my German pen-pal sends back. Her name is Madeline, I think... isn't that beautiful?  This is exactly the kind of project that I would put together for students in my art classes. I've always wanted to befriend a teacher in Iraq or Afghanistan so that I could begin to build a tiny little bridge of friendship between young people there and my American students.  Hidden agenda?  Sure... I'm out to save the world... one ATC at a time. I should have one of those "whirrled peas" bumper stickers, but my car is too "serious" to deface with vinyl.... riiight.