Trumpet fanfare, banners fly, a proclamation is made:
As promised, inspired by Andrea, Marla the guest-poster made her first Artist Trading Card!
(Taking the stage and steppiing up to the mike, she guestures toward the 2.5 X 3.5 inch result)
Behold! Some untreated wood veneer panels I took off our friends’ porch. They use it for kindling. I had to have some, to do…I don’t know…something with. It’s so beautiful. So I covered it up with stuff.
Behold! An array of vintage photos. We sell them for $1.50 each, but also use them to fill in old frames and I’ll switch one from my collection at home with the one on top, so we’ll consider the one I used “found”.
Behold! The toddler on her splat mat, which is made from an oilcloth remnant. We sell it by the yard, as well as a few products like bibs and aprons and lunch sacks and totes. The pattern is Mums Red, which I used to cover my glider cushions. Cutting a few inches off doesn’t make a big difference, because she still manages to make messes off the mat no matter how big it is. Really.
Behold! A stack of comics and old magazines. I read them sometimes when it’s slow, and find it so relaxing. We had a larger pile of the comics once, which were priced at 50 cents each. When I sold them, I gave a round figure that still profited the store, and so these remainders are considered “paid for”. Sometimes I give them to kids whose parents buy stuff. So, I considered them as “found items” for the project.
Behold! The assembled card. I am pleased with how it came together. The materials: wood veneer, old photo, oilcloth, Archie comic. All it needs is to be glued. I’m sure there are archival glues around, but I have to use what’s there, so WeldBond it is. Besides, it might look cool as it ages.
The inspiration? My favourite artist Margaret Kilgallen’s hand-painted trainyard photos, and the fantastic art of Isabel Samaras. As well, the idea of altering something thrifted that already exists makes a perfect jumping off point. So yes, by all means, make one with a hockey card. But maybe dress the guy up with some glitter and images of fruit cut out of a Chatelaine magazine you might have laying around.
I like the idea of using completely unrelated materials, and period images that are contemporary, yet diverse (the cartoon and the photo); with the retro-style oilcloth as a bridge between modern and vintage and tying both together by virtue of the foliage. So the photo of an older lady mowing the lawn in a staid posture (and in today’s world, grossly over-dressed) became the lady mowing a jungle in which an alarmed buxom cartoon lass is hiding. And I created the scenario, like some mad scientist! (Mwahhahaha!)
So it is titled with a line from one of the panels: “The Poor Thing Was Trembling Like A Frightened Deer As We Edged Closer…”
******INTERMISSION********
A lovely customer comes in and buys a few yards of oilcloth. The toddler sees her opportunity…
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Behold.
Um, does anyone still want to do this? Because you don’t have to now.
