Artist Trading Cards

Are you looking for a fun and easy art project to do with your friends and family? Artist Trading Cards (ATCs) are easy, portable, and fun! Basically, they are just like sports trading cards but handmade by you!

What exactly are Artist Trading Cards? “Artist trading cards, or ATCs, are small pieces of art that are traded. Artists create, trade and collect either in person or online. The only official rule for ATCs is the size: 2.5″ x 3.5″.”

Making ATCs with friends and family provides an opportunity for quality time together. Whether you're creating cards side by side or hosting a crafting session, it's a chance to bond and enjoy each other's company.

Creating ATCs doesn't require extensive artistic skill, making it inclusive for family members and friends of all ages and skill levels. It's a project that can be enjoyed by both beginners and experienced artists. These unique cards make wonderful personalized gifts. You can create them for each other, exchanging small tokens of creativity that hold sentimental value. It adds a personal touch to gift-giving.

And, over time, you can build a family or friend art collection through the exchange of ATCs. This collection becomes a visual representation of shared creativity and experiences.

Try This

Making Artist Trading Cards:

1. Gather your materials: 
   • Heavy paper, glue (sticks or liquid), magazines, paint, markers, colored pencils… whatever art materials you like!
2. Cut heavy / sturdy paper to the ATC size of 2.5” x 3.5”
3. Create something unique on the front of your card
4. The back of your cards should contain your name, any contact information you wish to provide, and the number or series of the card. Some artists start numbering their cards with number 1, and just keep going. Others will do series numbering, such as 1 of 7 or 1/7. How you number is totally up to you.
5. Swap your ATCs with your group and Have Fun! 

References:

• ARTIST TRADING CARDS – POSITIVE WORDS
• Artist Trading Cards – Mixed Media
• Artist Trading Card Basics