Cardistry: The Juggling of Playing Cards

[Narrator] We've all seen a magician

present a deck of cards with a flourish.

That's just the beginning

in the mesmerizing art of cardistry.

The way I would describe cardistry

is an expression of technical skill

with a deck of cards meant to show off.

It's juggling with playing cards.

[Narrator] Over the last decade,

a small group of fanatics has turned simple shuffling

into freaky performance art.

The way the art form has grown

it's like sharing through social media,

YouTube, Instagram, things like that.

So we thought it would be an awesome idea

for all these amazing artists

to get together under one roof

and just meet each other and share their passion.

[Narrator] Cartists from around the globe

recently gathered in Brooklyn

to swap tips at the first official cardistry convention.

cardistry has become my life.

It's not only fun just for me,

but to come up with a new move

that makes my friends in Denmark impressed,

that is why I continue to do cardistry.

[Narrator] Cardistry grew out of magician's flourishes,

but today distances itself from sleight of hand.

Yeah, card flourishes was always

sort of like within card magic.

It was a way to access a point.

It wasn't until 10 or so years ago

that guys like Damon I. and some of the guys

coming to this event really started taking those ideas

and just running with them.

These days, what's happening, with Instagram especially,

is that concept, you know, once they're

at a presentable level, to be posted right away

and be reviewed by people across the globe.

What people are going for is the impact,

the aesthetics, the visual arrangement

and design of what's happening.

One of my favorite things about cardistry

is as long as you have a deck of cards,

you can do it anywhere,

so it's like I have an endless supply

of blank canvases in my pocket just ready to be painted.

It's really fun because it just never gets old.