Diane DeMers Chen in El Cajon, California is making an ATC(Artist Trading Card)-A-Day...
Why did you decide to do this project? I like making art but have a hard time with things holding me back mentally: I'm not good enough, the subject isn't beautiful enough (or meaningful, precious, profound, etc). I bought the Skulls book when it first came out but I don't think I really understood at the time that Noah made one EVERY day. Earlier this year I joined a sketchcrawl group and one member was talking about the make-something-365 project and talked about the skulls, so I went home and looked at the book some more and decided I would do a 365 project. I chose the ATC format because it is small (2 1/2" x 3 1/2"), so it is less intimidating.
How has doing a yearlong/daily project affected your life? It has really changed my perception of myself and art. I have much more confidence in myself; that I can create something when needed. For the first couple of weeks I didn't have any trouble with ideas for subjects. Then it got harder and I would get really stressed out if I didn't have an idea by late afternoon. Now I know I can make an ATC in 1/2 an hour if I need to. I go through phases where I think I'm getting stale - I use a lot of faux postage I've purchased, and sometimes it feels repetitive, especially since I often use 3 gems as accents, mostly because I went nuts buying them and probably have a 5-year supply! And yet, I think each single ATC still stands by itself OK. I have a Pogo printer that prints 2 x 3 inch prints from my pictures on my phone. I have used this quite a bit too, and a lot of scrapbook papers, both backgrounds and themes.
The most interesting thing is how some friends have reacted. One friend thinks it's really cool and when I went to visit her, she was excited to help me with ideas and gave me some stuff to use. Another is jealous of the time I spend on them, even though she does art and should know better.
It's been more than 4 months, and I have no plans to quit anytime soon. I have missed a few days here and there, but make it up the next day and I think that's OK. Usually it's because I'm really busy and just don't have time (more than once I've fallen asleep in the middle of working on one - seriously). Once I got busy doing other things and actually forgot! That surprised me because when I started it was constantly on my mind, and now it's just another part of my life. But I do get behind in posting because I'm often too tired when I finish the card. Then I end up posting 3 or 4 at a time. People don't seem to mind, though.
See all of Diane's ATC's HERE.
Why did you decide to do this project? I like making art but have a hard time with things holding me back mentally: I'm not good enough, the subject isn't beautiful enough (or meaningful, precious, profound, etc). I bought the Skulls book when it first came out but I don't think I really understood at the time that Noah made one EVERY day. Earlier this year I joined a sketchcrawl group and one member was talking about the make-something-365 project and talked about the skulls, so I went home and looked at the book some more and decided I would do a 365 project. I chose the ATC format because it is small (2 1/2" x 3 1/2"), so it is less intimidating.
How has doing a yearlong/daily project affected your life? It has really changed my perception of myself and art. I have much more confidence in myself; that I can create something when needed. For the first couple of weeks I didn't have any trouble with ideas for subjects. Then it got harder and I would get really stressed out if I didn't have an idea by late afternoon. Now I know I can make an ATC in 1/2 an hour if I need to. I go through phases where I think I'm getting stale - I use a lot of faux postage I've purchased, and sometimes it feels repetitive, especially since I often use 3 gems as accents, mostly because I went nuts buying them and probably have a 5-year supply! And yet, I think each single ATC still stands by itself OK. I have a Pogo printer that prints 2 x 3 inch prints from my pictures on my phone. I have used this quite a bit too, and a lot of scrapbook papers, both backgrounds and themes.
The most interesting thing is how some friends have reacted. One friend thinks it's really cool and when I went to visit her, she was excited to help me with ideas and gave me some stuff to use. Another is jealous of the time I spend on them, even though she does art and should know better.
It's been more than 4 months, and I have no plans to quit anytime soon. I have missed a few days here and there, but make it up the next day and I think that's OK. Usually it's because I'm really busy and just don't have time (more than once I've fallen asleep in the middle of working on one - seriously). Once I got busy doing other things and actually forgot! That surprised me because when I started it was constantly on my mind, and now it's just another part of my life. But I do get behind in posting because I'm often too tired when I finish the card. Then I end up posting 3 or 4 at a time. People don't seem to mind, though.
See all of Diane's ATC's HERE.
