Le Fanu
HerzogIsGod & I are embarking on an IDS of the Dodal and part of this IDS will involve just looking at the dynamics and interaction of 3 card spreads. These are not conventional readings, it is just a way for us to think about how cards might relate to one another, or echo one another. Here is an extract from the IDS pledge;
I would like to start by posting some thoughts here. We will not be using this thread for interpretative, "personal" readings but simply as a way of looking at cards, merely a possible approach of how to look at cards, how to read Marseilles cards with the (Flornoy) Dodal as our focus, thinking about only what we see in front of us.
I confess, much as I love the historical/Marseilles decks, I have difficulty reading them spontaneously and I think I need to create a mindset which is free of all the occult theory and symbolism which is laid onto the cards, and think about how they might relate to one another aesthetically, just in terms of composition and the optical language. This is why we decided to do an IDS. I have no idea where this is going to take us and I begin this IDS with a certain amount of trepidation but thought I'd start anyway. So now's as good a time as any and I'm going to post first.
I just sat down with my Dodal, shuffled, laid out three cards which can be seen in the attachment below.
It is a very interesting combination!
We have the 3 of Swords, the Wheel of Fortune and the Ace of Swords. Quite a dramatic combination visually. The first thing which strikes me is the sense of rotation in the centre alongside the two red "stabilising" fixed pillars of the Swords images. Both outer cards seem to fix the rotation of the central wheel, which is ramified by the fact that both these fixed swords are red. This brings a certain harmony to the spread. I really do get a sense of central motion and outer fixity. I am not reading this as a conventional spread (it isn't a reading) but I begin to get an idea of how one might read it if it were a spread. Thinking about movement and fixity is an interesting starting point (remember, this is quite new to me, I'm just feeling my way!).
Also interesting is how the crossed points in the 3 of swords on the left echo the grasping hand of the Ace and the upper crown in the Ace. There is a sense of rhythms converging, which is further echoed by the creature at the apex (is that the correct word?) of the wheel who also - surprise, surprise - grasps a sword. I can definitely see the rhythm of Swords in this spread, tying up, balance and motion.
The more I look at it, the tidier it seems compositionally. Certainly colour is a way forward, seeing where parallels and echoes of colour appear but in this particular spread, I think the dynamics of movement/shape are actually stronger than colour.
The predominant shapes here are fascinating, we have an eliptical form (3 of Swords), a wheel, and a slicing, vertical line (Ace of Swords echoing the central Sword in the 3). Note also how the cuff on the Ace of Swords is like a continuation of the blue band which forms the floor beneath the wheel. Adds continuity like the sleeve of an outretched arm which grasps the sword. And the wheel rotates from right to left, that is, from the Ace towards the 3. Movement goes from right to left (whatever that might mean.)
I think there is also some echoing going on between the two beasts at the right & left of the wheel and the red (handles?) bits next to the numerals III on the 3 (don't know how to explain this, I can never make out where the swords are on sword pip cards) Also, I like the fluttering, cascading vines/leaves coming down from the crown. Everything here could mean something, but what strikes me is just how much action there is in three interconnected Marseilles cards! I feel there is enough there to analyse all night!
Just visually, I like these rhythms. Like I say, as we are beginning our IDS, I am not quite sure where this is going to take us. I just want to think about how to look at the patterns thrown up by Marseilles images. Later (and elsewhere, not here) we are going to think about how we might think about reading these forms.
Herzog (and anyone else who wants to participate) what are your thoughts?
.Le Fanu said:We plan to think about Enrique Enriquez' "Eye Rhythms", which involves seeking out connections between cards; lines, similarities, echoes, symmetry. We will do small, three card spreads, what we plan to call "Scientific" spreads (just exercises in how to read the interaction between cards) and then more "Personal" spreads which will be based around questions and issues. The former will be an opportunity to think freely about the cards, the latter will be trying to make it relevant.
I would like to start by posting some thoughts here. We will not be using this thread for interpretative, "personal" readings but simply as a way of looking at cards, merely a possible approach of how to look at cards, how to read Marseilles cards with the (Flornoy) Dodal as our focus, thinking about only what we see in front of us.
I confess, much as I love the historical/Marseilles decks, I have difficulty reading them spontaneously and I think I need to create a mindset which is free of all the occult theory and symbolism which is laid onto the cards, and think about how they might relate to one another aesthetically, just in terms of composition and the optical language. This is why we decided to do an IDS. I have no idea where this is going to take us and I begin this IDS with a certain amount of trepidation but thought I'd start anyway. So now's as good a time as any and I'm going to post first.
I just sat down with my Dodal, shuffled, laid out three cards which can be seen in the attachment below.
It is a very interesting combination!
We have the 3 of Swords, the Wheel of Fortune and the Ace of Swords. Quite a dramatic combination visually. The first thing which strikes me is the sense of rotation in the centre alongside the two red "stabilising" fixed pillars of the Swords images. Both outer cards seem to fix the rotation of the central wheel, which is ramified by the fact that both these fixed swords are red. This brings a certain harmony to the spread. I really do get a sense of central motion and outer fixity. I am not reading this as a conventional spread (it isn't a reading) but I begin to get an idea of how one might read it if it were a spread. Thinking about movement and fixity is an interesting starting point (remember, this is quite new to me, I'm just feeling my way!).
Also interesting is how the crossed points in the 3 of swords on the left echo the grasping hand of the Ace and the upper crown in the Ace. There is a sense of rhythms converging, which is further echoed by the creature at the apex (is that the correct word?) of the wheel who also - surprise, surprise - grasps a sword. I can definitely see the rhythm of Swords in this spread, tying up, balance and motion.
The more I look at it, the tidier it seems compositionally. Certainly colour is a way forward, seeing where parallels and echoes of colour appear but in this particular spread, I think the dynamics of movement/shape are actually stronger than colour.
The predominant shapes here are fascinating, we have an eliptical form (3 of Swords), a wheel, and a slicing, vertical line (Ace of Swords echoing the central Sword in the 3). Note also how the cuff on the Ace of Swords is like a continuation of the blue band which forms the floor beneath the wheel. Adds continuity like the sleeve of an outretched arm which grasps the sword. And the wheel rotates from right to left, that is, from the Ace towards the 3. Movement goes from right to left (whatever that might mean.)
I think there is also some echoing going on between the two beasts at the right & left of the wheel and the red (handles?) bits next to the numerals III on the 3 (don't know how to explain this, I can never make out where the swords are on sword pip cards) Also, I like the fluttering, cascading vines/leaves coming down from the crown. Everything here could mean something, but what strikes me is just how much action there is in three interconnected Marseilles cards! I feel there is enough there to analyse all night!
Just visually, I like these rhythms. Like I say, as we are beginning our IDS, I am not quite sure where this is going to take us. I just want to think about how to look at the patterns thrown up by Marseilles images. Later (and elsewhere, not here) we are going to think about how we might think about reading these forms.
Herzog (and anyone else who wants to participate) what are your thoughts?