Magic fans who still enjoy sending mail the old-fashioned way, take note: the United States Postal Service has unveiled their custom line of 2018 stamps, and five of them are inspired by the “art of magic”.
From the report on USPS.com:
The Postal Service celebrates the art of magic with this pane of 20 stamps featuring digital illustrations of five classic tricks magicians use to amaze and delight audiences: a rabbit in a hat (production), a fortune teller using a crystal ball (prediction), a woman floating in the air (levitation), an empty bird cage (vanishing), and a bird emerging from a flower (transformation).
No word on issue date or other details just yet, but they should be available for postage by early next year. Other people and subjects honored by the upcoming USPS stamps include Lena Horne, Mister Rogers, Sally Ride, John Lennon, the Flag Act of 1918, World War 1, and more. You can see samples of each here.
Chicago’s Jim Krenz sits down with Elliott Terral to talk for three full hours on the Art of Magic podcast, Magical Thinking. The conversation covers a broad range of topics, including advice for young magicians (“Resist the urge to put some search term into YouTube.”), not revealing secrets to laypeople, and how to handle burnout.
Of particular interest to would-be creators is the discussion about how to be creative. Even if you don’t think you’re overly creative or original, there are things you can do to help let your mind wander down paths that might lead to something truly innovative. You don’t even need to start from scratch, necessarily; start with a trick you really enjoy, then ponder how you might change it, tweak it, improve it. And don’t try to cram your musings into your daily commute. Give yourself the time and space you need to really focus on nothing but letting your brain do some work.
It’s a great listen, especially if you’re just getting started in magic. You can find all of Magical Thinking on Art of Magic’s site or over on iTunes.
Joel Greenwich has an impressive single-card color change available over at ArtofMagic that comes with a little something extra: good karma. Proceeds from the sale of Catalyst will benefit the M. K. Ghandi Institute for Nonviolence. Learn a slick trick with several variations, do your bit for world peace. Not bad for seven bucks.
Buy Catalyst from Art of Magic
- Category: Sleight of hand
- Price: $7
- Format: Download