Remembering the Origins of Community

[Salt Fire]

It’s pretty amazing to sit back and reminisce modern playing card history. Some of us have witnessed not one, but two renaissance booms within the industry. It’s been interesting to see different chapters come and go as artists leave brushes of influence that help build the community. Tonight I’m thinking fondly of the artists that inadvertently illustrated the foundations of what many artists thrive within today.
Our fast paced world is all about what happens next. Each release is a dopamine hit as we rip back the cellophane and we can hardly break in the canvas of our new art before we’re asked to look away in preparation for the next course. I like to think back to those late night sessions with artists when we would share ideas and just tell jokes. We would help pass the time in eager anticipation for the next deck of cards. We had time to say more and savor more. Many domains have become quieter and a community expands outward, beyond where we all once stood, leaving a lot of negative space.
It’s about time we take a few steps back and revisit the nostalgia of what made us love this community so much. I’m eager to see what we can do.

Cheers.

[Honeybee]

Apologies but I could not resist it. You did say "tell jokes"
ps I LOVE this community

[GandalfPC]

I am happy with a slower pace of collecting - and the “boom town” aspect of the days of a thousand kickstarters was bound to burn itself out - always regrows a forest, and cards have been popular since cards - so I am betting it is here for the long haul and will see its share of hay days as the years pass.

In the midst of that boom town was “the golden age” of modern cards I think - so it wasn’t all bad

[MagikFingerz]

I often have thoughts and feelings like this when I take a look through my collection.

Ellusionist making a simple inverted Rider Back design with their Black Tigers, Lance Miller launching his (still incredible) Actuators on KS, and all the great artists that followed.

Not to mention all the drama and weird stuff happening over the years (Decknique, UC.net, PlayingCardForum, UC.com), and yet...