Art Deco Artist Trading Cards

Artist Trading Cards by Phillip Hoyle

Artistic style changes thus creating what art historians call periods. Art Deco began in Europe in the 1920s and some years later spread to America. It was the design, architectural, and craft style that can be seen as distinct with its use of geometric designs, metal, inlays, and so forth. The style was widely used in public art works during the Great Depression of the 1930s and extended into the early 40s.

The prompt for last week’s Artist Trading Cards trade was Art Deco. To meet it I searched for ideas online and in books. I settled on letters (the development of new print fonts were big in the period), skyscrapers (think of NYC’s Chrysler Center and the Empire State Building, and the use of ancient motifs in a modern architectural environment (my fancy talk). Anyway the challenge occupied my mind and quite a few hours. I drew, experimented with stamps, made a mess, cleaned it up, and voila, I completed nineteen ATC’s.

Working in this tiny (2 ½ x 3 ½ inch) format is a great way to experiment with technique and to use up leftover scraps of art materials, all those things you just can’t bear to throw away. I figure as long as I can afford glue, I can make these cards for years! And the work area doesn’t have to be large. If I ever end up living in a tiny house, I can keep making these tiny pieces of art!

Have a good art week and a happy holiday.

Denver, 2015

Artist Trading Cards by Phillip Ho