mail exchange proposal

[Grief]

howdy folks,

i'm making this thread to possibly start an art exchange of involving members of the community, and seeing if anyone is interested. recieving mail sucks, its always bills and junk for advetisements. personally i am very interested in the idea of passing gifts and ideas. there's a lot of awesome artists (you know who you are) whose scribbles i want, and would be willing to offer my scribbles in return. let's reclaim our mailboxes from its suckiness of routine.

basically what it would involve is a swapping of mailing addresses and sending other users small works, doodles, sketches, drawings, etc. i'm not sure what would be the best way to go about doing this (and am open to suggestions of course), but i'll toss out a few ideas of how it could function and see what sticks.

i think all the works should have a standard size and be fairly smallish (5x7" or something) so advanced packaging wouldn't cost some users a substantial amount. (also it'd be easier to store/exhibit the works if they are a uniform scale)

anyway here's one way in which this could work:

let's say 12 people hop on board this idea. each of the users would make an edition of works large enough for everyone in the group to recieve one. i understand not everyone is a print-maker so drawing a dozen identical images would be tedious and wasteful, with that note that i'm using the word 'edition' very loosely. with this setup everyone involved gets a work from everyone else.

however when the number of participants grows to say fifty, it seems like it'd be a full time job just to get works done for all the other users. i think to best solve this all the artists would send in 10 images to a single source (i guess to me for the time being in this hypothetical situation) and then i would randomly distribute 10 images back to each user of other artists submission (making sure they do not recieve any of their own). this is a problem that could have a lot of solutions, as this wouldnt allow for specific other members to recieve personalized images, and that's an aspect i'd like to retain if at all possible in the images. i dont anticipate that many members being interested right away, so the initial sending of art would be very minimal and easy to manage.

there's also other things i haven't thought out such as the frequency of delivery, if people want to just send out images to the 'mailing list' on a whim when they get time, or if it should be a two, three, or four times a year, or even a monthly structure. honestly i think i'd rather just send out stuff to people as i recieved them, almost like a pen-pal but with a small community.

if anyone is interested chime in and lemme know. and if you have suggestions, questions, or on-topic opinions, feel free to drop a line. for now though do not provide personal information (such as mailing address), i'll try to figure out a more secure venue for distributing that sort of details (ie, might be through PM on CA)



[edit 06/26/09]

due to the great response here is a list of users actively interested in participating. PM them with your information and requests and get your list of mail-buddies rollin'. (if anyone wants their name added/removed from the list reply in this thread and i'll adjust it accordingly when i have the time)

Meissner
kagemusha22
Hookswords
spaztastic
cmalidore
jeremyg0rd0n
pezzle
muz
Noa K
Smashed_Pumpkin
petitemistress
silvestri99
Jake Kobrin
Asatira
realitychek
Sekino
Ghostbrush
Kilowatt
Slash
Linguini
HunterKiller_
~Faust~
Sorknes
AsaB
kelly x
Aphotic Phoenix
Grief
Sundance
Tangrim
Bill
MichaelNoel
Edward Cherniga
loveandasandwich
wookiedabo
Drin
Mock
Yngling
Troubadour
Kamikazebob
Spirit
PatriciaS
donalfall


be sure to spread the word.

all the best
joe

[Jovian M]

Sounds cool. Mind you, I'm sure anyone who received something from me would be a little disappointed.

[Kagemusha22]

Sounds interesting. The only thing is wouldn't oversea's postage get a little expensive, or would you limit it for an inital period?

[Hookswords]

This could be fun. I hate my mailbox. Rarely does it have something good in it. I'd be up for giving this a try, even if it means Grief knowing where I live

[Aphotic Phoenix]

Why not do something like postcards?
Pros:
- As long as it's roughly 6x4 it only costs $0.28 to send.
- No envelopes/packaging required.
- Wear and tear of the postal service can be interesting (or bad)

Cons:
- You have to know how to do the backside properly. Template makes this easy.
- Water-based mediums kinda lose on this one.
- Limits your paper type to something hardy enough to survive mailing. (Postal regulations require something between .007 to .016 in thickness)

I'd be down. ^_^

[spaztastic]

I second the post card idea.

[cmalidore]

This sounds kinda fun

[Brashen]

Not condemning the idea or anything but this reminds me of DA's 'lets trade art' shit. that's where unknown noob would give you some doodling of his and expect something awesome in return...meh very skeptical about this but not doubting your intentions Grief.

[spaztastic]

oh brashen, wherever have you been

[Aphotic Phoenix]

Brashen, art trades are not exclusive to DA, especially in printmaking where part of the art is to create a series of prints. The reason I suggested postcards is because I've actually seen them done before on a national scale via a printmaking course. (You would send in a series of 15 cards + postage and receive 15 random cards back).

[Surzsha]

Well, Brashen does have a point. And yet again, this isn't Deviantart. We're all adults here (and tough ones, at that).

[Ashtonw]

Why not have a free-for-all, everyone posts their addressses and then anyone can mail them whatever, whenever.

[jeremygordon89]

I agree, this seems like a cool idea
I'd be down for this

[Pezz]

I wouldn't mind participating or having like art pen pals or something. It's nice to get snail mail sometimes, especially when all I ever get are bills, crappy credit offers and coupon mailers. Something about the tactile sensation of touching the postcard or artwork instead of seeing it pixel by pixel on the computer.

[Grief]

glad to see there some people interested in giving this a shot.

i'm too lazy at the moment to go through and address every response but here's a few things that came to mind while reading the comments:

1.) you are all awesome.

2.) i like the idea of having the images being a post card size (there's actually a few different post card standards... i think), but i certainly do not want to limit the material to needing to use a post card. different papers, having a deckled edge, canvas, linen, cloth, etc... it should all be fair game i don't want to impose too many restrictions or limitations, as i think the creativity of the artists should be the foremost aspect. even if a work was somewhat three dimensional that'd be fine with me (just don't get too rediculous with breaking into the third dimension). as far as envelopes and packaging i think that'll be up to each individual. i personally like designing that sort of stuff, but it also may add to the tactile nature of the work to get wear-n-tear from the mailing process.

3.) i am basing this off of the cascade print exchange, which an oregon based event for print-makers (which last year got 125 artists from 11 countries), and the results are always top-notch. this, however, is more about any medium. i don't expect anyone to make the same series of images over and over to send out to everyone, just think of them like personalized illustrations for whomever you decide to send to on the list.

4.) i am not sure if i meant 'who' or 'whom' in that last sentence, and am too sleepy to think it through.

5.) we could very well make this an elitist gathering of artists, where artists could be rejected from having access to the mailing list of contributors, it very well could be a high-art sort of thing. but fuck that. if some 12 year old sends me a crayon drawing of DBZ fanart, right on! that's cooler than electric bills, and if he can take the time to send a drawing, then i damn sure would return the favor. i dont want to exclude anyone because of quality, skill level, or their 'name'. i certainly would hate to have pressure on the individuals participating by needing to adhere to a mysterious level of quality. i dont want this to be a burden. i mean if i received a stick figure with a boner, that'd make my day regardless of who sent it.

6.) that said, i also don't want this to be affilliated with conceptart too drastcally. using the forums to communicate and maybe scan in and show what other people sent you will be encouraged, but i dont think making a 'post your mailing address' thread would do the community any favors. a degree of seperation will be had to ensure the personal information of artists. what i'm thinking right now is maybe something like this:
-a new artist seeks to join the art exchange
-they send their request to me (or maybe someone more organized than me) with their mailing information.
-other artists are notified via a group email. ex: "hey guys! so-and-so would like to participate, drop him a line and get the fun rollin!"
-the other artists can then respond to the new artist with their information. this provides the option for some artists to not have to share information with others artists if they so choose for whatever reason.
-'new artist' now has a list of people willing to exchange work with him.

maybe that process is a bit cluttered. i'll need to think it through to see if there's any faults in its logic. it might be easier to just use the 'friends' system of users on CA as being your list of people you have access to. there's a lot of ways this could go, keep in mind that my ideas are by no means the 'best' or 'only' option or way of thinking, as always give your two cents and concerns.

7.) international artists are encouraged to participate as well. you can all afford internet, a few stamps once a month wont kill anyone i hope. stamps are pretty expensive, but is a few dollars worth getting something from a friend halfway around the world, and then being able to send a unique piece back to them? hell yes it is.

8.) i'll check this in 24 hours or so, keep the ideas comin'

[Bill]

Maybe, in a common thread like this one, we could post 5x7's we'd be willing to trade, and individuals could just pm each other over the logistics of it, working their own deals. Maybe in a month, June 24th could be a "Post your Tradeables Day" mini-event?

[Muz]

Sounds like a cool idea .

Imo the best way to do this is to do a lucky dip. Everyone send in their addresses to you, then you randomly hand out lets say 2 adresses, to each person, keeping it a secret from the person who will receive it.

That way you have everyone receiving something and everyone who sends out something.

If you do that try and make sure that people are sending them over seas as opposed to internally in the country as it is always so much cooler to get something from across the world.

I have done a sketch exchange by mail before and it was a very cool experience. Still have a dozen pwnsome images from that sitting on my wall.

[madster]

Do not post addresses online.
You will be opening yourself up to an entirely different Grief than you intend.

It would be best if you can have someone as "key master," who would collect all the addys. Maybe set something up monthly where IF you have a piece of art to actually send, ready to go, you then 'tag in' and get an addy of someone to send it to. Start at the top of the list, and work down for in>outs.
If you don't send something, your name goes to the bottom of the list. This way, those who participate will get stuff, those who chump out only get away with it once...
Maybe set up monthly "themes," not that anyone needs to follow them, but it can make things a bit more interesting, and helps those struck by "artist's block."

It is always fun to get mail you are not expecting, when it's mail that doesn't want something from you...

Have fun!
~M

[Noa K]

that's a great idea Grief! count me in!

i never thought stamps would cost so much, but i guess if you send to like 12 people at the same time it could be a little bothering... so my suggestion would be to make a circular movemant of the post-cards: A sends to B, B sends A's card to C and so on.. will that work?
hmmm.. on second thought, it might not be cost-reducing that much, maybe it needs a bit of working out..

[Smashed_Pumpkin]

This sounds like a fantastic idea. I live in England but would be more than willing to pay the overseas mailing cost to send some stuff out to wherever.

I suppose the challenge would be to set up a system where the process can continue without landing a heap of work on one particular person who is expected to sort out matching people together.

Say something like this:

Each person is given a number and a letter (lets imagine 10 people opt in) so we have numbers 1 - 10 and letters A - J.

Then those numbers and letters are staggered to match them together making a "send to" and a "recive from" code.

1st Round
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
J A B C D E F G H I

2nd Round
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
I J A B C D E F G H

(for example the person with #1 and Letter-A would send their post to the person with letter-J and recieve thier post from the person with #2)

Then for each "round" of sending post you just stager the letters and numbers along one space resulting in a new sender and reciever each time, until the cycle is complete.

This way all you would need is a thread with a database showing the CA.org profiles attached to each Number-Letter identity and then you could simply contact your "reciever" requesting their mailing address while your "sender" contacts you for yours. This way the ball is in your court as to weather you give out your address and there's no middle man being landed with a bunch of addresses to sort and distribute.

"Hi there,
I've been matched up with you to be my reciver for round x of the CA.org mail exchange and this is a request for your mailing address!. <Link to the Mail Exchange thread so they can check you're not bullshitting>"

Ofcourse these don't need to be numbers and letters at all, Infact it would probably be even easier if the system just used numbers so each month (if it was monthly) a post would be made in the thread with 2 rows of numbers and from that everyone would know who they're sending to and who they're recieving from.

I hope that made sense, please ask if it didn't but as far as I can see it is a system that would work with minimal strain on an individual as long as the comunity work together. Again possibly making it tend towards a more select group of artists but to be honest it wouldn't take long to weed out those who don't want to play ball.

Edit:
Just read it through again and there is infact no need what so ever for the use of letters, especially considering there are only 26 of the buggers. It may as well just look like this:

S = Sender
R = Reciever

1st Round
S:01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10
R:10 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09

2nd Round
S:01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10
R:09 10 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08

3rd Round
S:01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10
R:08 09 10 01 02 03 04 05 06 07

And so on...

And then referencing the list of Names to numbers you know exactly who you're sending to (who you need to request an address from) and who you're recieving from (who you can expect an address request from). This system also means all future rounds can be set up in advance making for even less work on the organisers shoulders.

[petitemistress]

I love snail mail! ive been sending and receiving stuff from all over the world since i was 14 (my mentor/crush at the time from Kansas' art is still hanging in my room hehehe. he was the bomb!) only problem is since our addie system sucks here, sometimes my mail gets lost. but other than that im all for it! pm-ing of addresses to begin when?

[spaztastic]

5.) we could very well make this an elitist gathering of artists, where artists could be rejected from having access to the mailing list of contributors, it very well could be a high-art sort of thing. but fuck that. if some 12 year old sends me a crayon drawing of DBZ fanart, right on! that's cooler than electric bills, and if he can take the time to send a drawing, then i damn sure would return the favor. i dont want to exclude anyone because of quality, skill level, or their 'name'. i certainly would hate to have pressure on the individuals participating by needing to adhere to a mysterious level of quality. i dont want this to be a burden. i mean if i received a stick figure with a boner, that'd make my day regardless of who sent it.

I accept your Challenge



How about CA cards similar to (don't kill me but pokemon) playing cards type things. or crap what is it..... ah.... trading cards that's what their called trading cards! and then they can become COLLECTIBLE TRADING CARDS OF AWESOMENESS

[iambanana]

Well, these are just my two cents, but personally I would find it way more awesome to recieve an original sketch than a print-out (Although that's pretty awesome as well). I do see how people may be hesitant to send an original sketch though, especially if it's any good.

But still, a signed original sketch is awesome, whether it's from a pro or a newbie.

[Jovian M]

In light of the updates 'n all that, I'd totally be down. O:

[SMILEFACE]

what if someone bought an mailed a sketchbook with a page worked on, to some one else

then repeat

edit ...like a school yearbook' each have there own sketchbook' draw and send to next person 'an when sketchbooks are full return to sender''

[silvestri99]

Very cool idea, i would love to be in on it!

[OldJake666]

I've done quite a few of these on other art websites and I therefore have quite a large collection of other's artwork. I would LOVE to participate in this event as well!!!

[Asatira]

Once everything is worked out, I am more than game.

[Aphotic Phoenix]

what if someone bought an mailed a sketchbook with a page worked on, to some one else

then repeat

edit ...like a school yearbook' each have there own sketchbook' draw and send to next person 'an when sketchbooks are full return to sender''

From personal experience this is really great for a localized group, but shipping costs, and higher risk of loss is sort of a factor when sending things through mail. Plus, the first few people get to look at far less art than the last few people who receive it.

We used to pass around a sketchbook during one of our rpg campaigns. Just about everyone contributed something despite only half the group being artists. I moved away, and a few years later got to come back and look through that book with all of my friends. Even the stick figures were precious. If you've got a close group of friends that gets together on a regular basis...do this! It's more awesome than I'd ever imagined.

[OldJake666]

what if someone bought an mailed a sketchbook with a page worked on, to some one else

then repeat

edit ...like a school yearbook' each have there own sketchbook' draw and send to next person 'an when sketchbooks are full return to sender''

I've done this kind of thing too. I can tell you from experience that it is much more difficult because it gets stuck at people's house or whatever and then it becomes greatly delayed. This is how I'd recommend doing it:

• We create a theme.
  
• Anyone who wants to be involved makes a sketch based on the theme.
  
• We then post these sketches in a thread.
  
• Someone collects all of the names of those who have posted art.
  
• Someone puts the names in a random order and posts it.
  
• The name above yours is who sends you their artwork.
  
• The name below yours is who you send to.
  
• We exchange address info and such through PM.
  
• We send everything off.
  
• We post the results in another thread.