the phantomwise tarot - deck in progress

alizarin

Hi all,

I've been around these parts for awhile though I tend not to post a whole lot. I've been reading for several years and painting since I was old enough to hold a brush, so I recently decided to go ahead and give designing my own deck a try.

I opted for a black and white deck, as I've been going through a black & white phase with my art and thought it might be helpful in keeping a cohesive visual style going throughout so many different cards. It's somewhat Waite-Smith influenced, with my own style and a bit of Alice-in-Wonderland and carnival style thrown in for good measure.

I've finished the first 4 cards, they can be seen on my website: phantomwise tarot gallery

I'm hoping to be done with the majors by sometime this summer, and will decide if I want to continue on with the minors once they're finished.

Anyway, I'd love comments and feedback! It's more an experiment than anything else at this point, though it is giving me a lot of practice with figure painting and helping with my continuing tarot studies as well.

Thank you!
 

Unknownspirit

Your deck is really beautiful! I would have to say that the card I like the best is the fool. I love the concept and can't wait to see more.
 

LixiPixi

Well, I've seen four cards and I'm already sold - those are absolutely gorgeous! What wonderful talent you have! I'll be "watching" this thread to keep up-to-date on the progress of this deck. Keep up the great work! You have one customer so far :D

LP~
 

6 Haunted Days

The cards you've shown are breathtaking! It's black and white, yet with your shading and use of imagery it comes alive. I can't wait to see the rest!
 

lunakasha

LixiPixi said:
Well, I've seen four cards and I'm already sold - those are absolutely gorgeous! What wonderful talent you have! I'll be "watching" this thread to keep up-to-date on the progress of this deck. Keep up the great work! You have one customer so far :D

LP~

Actually....make that TWO customers.....I am completely sold as well!

I love the look of this deck....not only the black-and-white, but the overall feel is very different than anything I have seen, yet hard to put into words.

PLEASE keep up the great work, I would love to see this as a completed deck someday....thanks for sharing here!

:) Luna
 

yaraluna

I LUUUUVVVVVV your deck!


Your deck is beautiful and of course the Empress and the H Priestess are my two fave cards. lovely!

yara

I get jealous the way some people are so good at the human form.:D
 

AprilFool

Your imagery and execution are both lovely. I particularly like that the deck's first four cards are different, but still share a "mood" or style that is quite cohesive. The Fool card is particularly inspired with the imagery of the rabbit leaping DOWN into the hole! That's positively inspired! :D

I'd absolutely LOVE to follow the progress of your deck, and can't wait to see if you find a way to publish and sell it!
 

Voron

I was skeptical when I read "black and white"...until I saw the cards! Wow! They are very beautiful, and I agree with all the other things that have been said -- thematically cohesive, excellent use shading, good human forms, dynamic...

What a great start!
 

alizarin

Oh wow, thank you all so much!

I'm absolutely thrilled that people who actually read tarot like the cards so far, I've had compliments on them as art but not much feedback from actual tarot readers.

And maybe "black and white and shades of grey" is a more appropriate description. I think it also helps me focus on the card content more, rather than getting distracted by color choices.

I'll definitely keep you all posted on my progress!
 

dandelion

What I like most about your cards are indications of motion and movement among the subjects in the Fool and Magician cards.

The black/white/greyscale really works for me - I like how it encourages the reader's eye to look into the shadow for the meaning (no pun intended).