Friday, November 28, 2008

Art In A Carton - Do you want to play?


It came in the mail a few weeks ago. My "Art in a Carton" gift from Susan J. Letham in Rendsburg, Germany. I found out about this 'round robin', of sorts from Mollye Self's blog site. Mollye is a ZNE member living in Shreveport, LA.( I love the wonderful global connections we can make in the Internet art community!)

Here's what Susan says about "Art in A Carton..." What is "Art In A Carton"?"Art In A Carton" is essentially a three-for-three swap. It's an artsy little "Pay It Forward" idea I dreamed up over Christmas, while hunting around for something small and sturdy in which to package and send out an item of art. While surveying my kitchen-come-art-studio, I picked up an empty milk carton. All of a sudden, my mind went "click!", and an idea was born. Standard milk- or fruit juice cartons are a perfect way to package and sent small items of art, and they can be turned into art objects in their own right, too!"



What you do to take part in "Art In A Carton"You find three half-litre or litre (or one-pint or one quart) milk or fruit juice cartons and make sure they are clean. You decorate the outside of the cartons, then fill them with small items of your own art. See the list below for a few starter ideas.You send one "Art In A Carton" package to the person who sent "Art In A Carton" to you.Then you take a look at the address labels, find a label with the oldest date, and send the second "Art In A Carton" package to that person.Send your third "Art In A Carton" package to an artist of your choice. It might be a good idea to ask the person if s/he'd like to play, that way it's more likely they will keep "Art In A Carton" moving along. For this package, choose someone whose label is not already included in the "Art In A Carton" label collection. Along with the third carton (only the third carton), you package up the project description that came in your package, the remaining artist's address labels, and pop in two labels with your own name and address. Remember to write the date on which you package up your project on the back of your labels. At some point a little further down the art line, your labels will carry the oldest date, and other artists will send "Art In A Carton" to you as a gift.You are welcome to make and send more than three "Art In A Carton" packages if you wish. Just make sure each package that you send to a "new" artist (the third and further packages) contains a project information sheet and a set of labels with dates. Make copies of the labels if necessary. Email me if you need a fresh or additional copy of the project information sheet.





The contents of each box will vary, depending on what I feel like making or what I use from my art gift stash. Items might include mini art chests filled with artsy delights, ATC, little art journals, paper dolls, journaling , art clay faces, matchbox art, unused rubber stamps, tags, ornaments, and the like




Ok! Now that's how Susan describes the project. The photos here are the very cool art items I received from Susan, also in the box are the addresses of the two people I am suppose to send art to, as well as two labels that I will forward that the next person will send art to.


Now where do you come in? If you would like to receive an "Art in a Carton" box from me, and are willing to post photos and links on your blog and will be willing to send out three "Art in a Carton" gifts, two addresses which you will receive and one person that you line up.......leave a comment below! I will pick a name from all the comments received and you'll get my box of art and will be included in the game. ( I'm dreaming that lots of folks will want to play.) And you can wait til after the holidays to send your art, as mine may not get to you right away. So leave a comment by December 15.





So if you would like to see a better explaination of the whole thing, visit Susan's blog







I love the work that Susan sent, this very cool folder, a little collaged ornament/box, velvety leaf, a fabulous ribboned and jeweled pyramid box made with origami papers, just beautiful, and a stash of fun fibers. The box is decorated with a very cool Moroccan image and sparkly sequins.
I hope you will play along.



Be sure to check out my non-profit group's blog to see the progress of our toy distribution to families in need in St. Louis. http://bro-saintlouis.blogspot.com/


3 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hi I am new to this site but I would love to participate. The e-mail I use the most is winesup56@yahoo.com so let me know if I can play. Thanks,
Dawn Walker

Anonymous said...

what a great idea, thanks for sharing the photos, I really like the pyramid too, have to go check out her blog too. Happy Holidays and your idea really is a cool one.

bonniebluedenim said...

Dawn Walker will be my winner!