Core77 Feature

With Norman Ibarra’s Metrodecks, Everyone Plays Fare

by Core77 on Monday, October 22, 2012 in Features

Muji’s transparent playing cards are cool, but Norman Ibarra’s Metrodeck Playing Cards are cool while checking the recycling & sustainability boxes. For two years the Brooklyn-based designer has been collecting those discarded Metrocards you see scattered around various subway stations, and after experimenting with a couple of print shops in Brooklyn, achieved what you see here.

Each face card is individually screen printed in four colors of enamel ink. The deck comes packaged in a custom 2-color, die-cut, and letterpressed tuck box printed by Mama’s Sauce Print Shop.

The deck also offers some insight into the city’s history by showcasing over ten years of advertising. Each deck has a random assortment of ads dating anywhere between 2001 and 2012. Some cards are truly one of a kind. Due to materials and handcrafting, each deck has slight variations from one piece to the next.

Originally published on Core77