Think your collecting days are over?

Monkey Hill Art-O-Mat, New Hope, PA

Detroit Community Art-O-Mat, Detroit, MI

Create Here Art-O-Mat, Chattanooga, TN

Whitney Museum Art-O-Mat, New York, NY

The Contemporary Museum Art-O-Mat, Honolulu, HI

It is no surprise that many of us who had been collecting art for some time are now rethinking that (some would argue) unnecessary luxury. Thankfully for you, as well as for myself, today I discovered that Atlanta, Georgia is fortunate enough to have one of the only 82 active Art-O-Mat machines in the country at our local arts-centric community center, Wonderroot! Art-O-Mat machines are retired cigarette vending machines that have been converted to vend art. The thrill of pulling the knob to receive your "prize" (although hauntingly reminiscent of my college days) is still just as enticing as it was then, although what arrives in the dispenser tray below is so much more rewarding than a hard pack of Parliaments--instead you walk away with a $5 piece of original art. So, in these tough times anyone can be an art collector. Go on, you know you want to try it!

To find the Art-O-Mat nearest you, click here. Happy collecting!