Am I missing something or why isn't this a feature? (Aligning multiple artbords to their artwork)

When I create logos or illustrations in Illustrator I often create multiple artboards. Sometimes up to 30-40 boards for different variations. Sometimes I want to export just the illustration to, for example, png's or something. Then I will have to use the artboard tool and double-click on each illustration to make them fit the artwork so I don't get this massive transparent space around it. Is there a smarter way of doing this? Am I missing something? Is there a way to export multiple illustrations without the artboards space around them?