Akron's North, South, East, and West sides are once again clubs, spades, hearts, and diamonds in a deck of playing cards that will benefit the city’s artists.
The new Akron on Deck set features 54 works depicting the Rubber City. Mac Love of the Art x Love creative agency said he received hundreds of submissions - and they're all different from the first deck released in 2020. There's paintings and sculptures as well as photographs of landmarks and businesses.
“We’ve got Akron Coffee Roasters, little-known diamonds-in-the-rough like the sword in the tree on West Exchange Street, to cultural institutions like Summit Artspace, the Akron skate park out in Ellet or the children’s museum,” he said.
There are even portraits of prominent Akron citizens, taken by noted photographers. Autumn Bland, who created the “Portraits of a Pandemic” series, contributed a photo of Curtis Minter, Jr., in front of the Well community center.
“The king of hearts is the Well... and Curtis Minter’s mother is already referring to him as the King of Hearts,” he said.
Love expected to sell about 1,000 decks of the first set of cards. It’s still available, and he has sold about 9,000 decks. Artists share in the proceeds, which are approaching about $60,000. The idea for Akron on Deck came to Love during the early stages of the coronavirus lockdown, when he remembered how much he enjoyed playing cards growing up.
“When we created this, we had this dream that maybe it could live in every home in Akron,” Love said. “It could be people’s first introduction to the city if they’re at the airport or staying in a hotel. I really hope that becomes the case down the road.”
Love’s wife, Allyse, coordinated the artwork submissions for Akron on Deck II. Despite being a lifelong Akronite, she said last year that the cards have helped her learn about her city.
“I am a sucker for diner breakfasts,” she said. “The picture that was submitted for Fred’s Diner is a cook holding a giant platter of bacon, and I was like, ‘Why have we never eaten here?’ I had never been there before.”
Although there's a limited supply available before the holidays of the new Akron on Deck II, more sets will be available in January.
