I'm going through this deck card-by-card on my blog, so figured I'd post my interpretations here as well!
Our fool is a baby chick perched on a tree branch, one foot stretched out as though he is about to step off. It’s a unique depiction, but a nod to the classic Rider-Waite portrayal of the Fool heading toward a cliff ledge.
Buds and blossoms are unfolding on the tree branch. It is spring-time, and the world is brimming with new life. Even the chick himself is a form of fresh, invigorating energy – a spring chicken. Possibilities are bursting forth everywhere!
The sky above is orange and yellow. The sun is just starting to climb into the sky. This brings to mind the metaphoric resonance of ‘the dawn of a new day.’ The Fool is not concerned with yesterday or tomorrow – he is immersed in the now. And it is always the now, as one moment gives way to the next. The sunrise gives the card a sense of adventure – where might this new day, this fresh blooming energy, take us?
The chick and the branch are black and white. The bright white of the branch makes it look charged with pure energy. The bright colors of the dawn fade in the lower portion of the card, giving way to black lines. We can’t know what is in the black void – the Fool is literally heading out into the Wild Unknown.
As I’ve been studying the Wild Unknown tarot deck as a whole, I’ve noticed an interesting use of lines throughout the cards. In the Fool, the sky is lined horizontally. These static, horizontal lines seem to me to represent energy that is still free-flowing – the energy is there, but hasn’t yet been guided into a particular direction. This fits in well with the notion of the Fool representing untamed, universal energy.
This card shows the classic conundrum of the Fool. Sometimes we perceive him as naïve, unprepared as he begins his journey. For better or for worse, the Fool is not yet burdened by over-thinking. But that is only one limited view. Another dimension of the Fool teaches that sometimes we need to trust our deep instincts and set out, having faith that life will support our leap.