by Nancy Haberman
"Sunrise" by Jennifer Simpson
If you are reading this post, you are living in a world driven by technology. Paradoxically, there has been a trend in art and graphic design towards “things handmade,” or anti-technology. Where once a graphic designer strove to make designs and typography more perfect and mechanical, new designers rebelled by distressing type and creating designs that appeared constructed and hand crafted. If you are a reader of any of the Stampington publications, particularly Stamper’s Sampler and Take Ten, you’ll find examples of some of the finest rubber stamped and hand crafted greeting cards that I’ve seen by crafters in the western hemisphere. Complex designs using mixed media have found a home in the greeting card, even if they do use basic elements created by others.
Twenty-first century creative individuals have growing access to the tools and techniques than once belonged to a select group of artisans. Regardless of the medium in which one chooses to create, once an image is digitized, inexpensive printers give almost everyone the ability to reproduce originals on demand in small quantities. The art of card making and publishing has truly become democratized, and while the Greeting Card Association (GCA), the U.S. trade association of the greeting card industry, estimates that 3000 individual studios, small family-run companies or major corporations are publishing greeting cards, it’s certain that when you add the tens of thousands photographers, artists and crafters who make their own greeting cards, part-time self-publishers far outnumber those counted by the GCA.
Throughout the history of greeting cards, which dates back to the ancient Chinese, greetings have been printed on cards and exchanged as a way of communicating. Like many Chinese inventions, the art of printing spread to Europe, and by the early 1400s, the Europeans were making greeting cards from woodcuts and hand delivering them. Greeting cards flourished with mail delivery, and
became more elaborate and creative by the 1800s, serving not only to carry a message, but also doubling as a small, and inexpensive gift.
The internet has presented artists who are willing to interact in this brave new world an opportunity to share our physical creations with the world. While we share electronically, we initiate the contact to spread our message 24/7, just like SETI’s (Search for Extra-Terrestrial Intelligence) perpetual monitoring for intelligent life in the universe. The computer, electronic publishing, the internet, and all they spawn, are, after all, pathways to diverse means of communication, and as artists we’re about communicating, sharing messages, and doing so in a unique and exciting ways.
Using the Oak Creek Printworks blog, we want to help you carry your message about your art and greeting cards, if not to the entire universe, at least around the globe. We want to know what kind of cards you’re creating and we’d like to consider them for possible publication on our blog. We’ll also place your images into consideration for our Quarterly Featured Artist Award. To enter a submission, email Stephanie@oakcreekprintworks.com and attach 4-5 images that are representative of a style, technique, or trend you use on your cards. Include with your submission a brief artist’s statement and address the following questions if applicable:
- How do you make your cards?
- What materials and media do you use?
- Do you reproduce your cards for marketing or resale?
- If so, in what quantity, on average?
- What is the wholesale/retail price range?
- If you sell your cards, what’s your best marketing tip?
- Describe your creative process, tips and techniques.
- How, if at all, do you reconcile the digital vs. the handmade?
- Include your web address and the link of your choice.
If your cards are considered, we ask that you send two additional sets of images, and if we publish your submission on our blog, we’ll link to your Ebay or Etsy store and the web page of your choice.