Does anyone find my deck interesting?

Aura Wolf

Karacol,

I think your work is stunning. It will not speak to everyone (whether it be the artwork or just the symbolism), but I like what I've seen so far and hope you continue. As long as your images are true to YOUR interpretations of the cards, I think that is all that matters. There's nothing wrong with non-traditional decks ;) Good luck with the rest of the project.
 

Enero

I really really like this!
I especially love the 2 of Swords, the 7 of Cups and The Devil.

The only card I'm unsure about is The Empress. Looking at it I didn't feel I could be inspired by it, or drawn into it. I think this could be becuase of the literal darkness of the image. I felt it should radiate a little more, perhaps be a bit more vivid?

Saying that, I would most definitely buy it! In fact, it's on my wishlist already :)

Thanks for sharing with us,

E x
 

karacol

LittleBuddha said:
I hope that you continue to give us updates about your work so that we can see how the deck progresses. I also hope that you have protected your work in some way so that it is not stolen; I remember Kat talking here, about how the 'Golden' was originally stolen and published without her permission. As a creator, this is a great place to be since we have such experienced members in this field - if you were not already aware, the creators of the 'Golden', 'Tarot of Prague', 'Gilded', 'The Gay Tarot' and the artist of the 'Morgan Greer' are all members at Aeclectic - they are all also very helpful and approachable people and there are many threads where they have all shared their experiences of creation.
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That's very helpful advice.. I think I'd read about the Golden tarot after doing a google search that turned up one of those threads.

I'm looking into protecting the deck... I have some rudimentary protections and I'm researching how to copyright something that is not yet complete.

I'm definitely going to post updates here, the feedback has been superb. That's the reason I joined Deviantart, for feedback, but it's interesting that most of the response I've received there is very image-oriented (what looks good, what colors work and don't, composition, etc) whereas over here the response has been very symbolically-oriented. The critique has been very refreshing.
 

karacol

Enero said:
The only card I'm unsure about is The Empress. Looking at it I didn't feel I could be inspired by it, or drawn into it. I think this could be becuase of the literal darkness of the image. I felt it should radiate a little more, perhaps be a bit more vivid?
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I agree more and more about the empress. Originally it was a lot brighter, but not more vivid, if that makes sense. Darkening it gave it a more engaging feel, but I don't think it's the right one. I'm still debating about how much darkness to leave, because it gives me the sense of Kali, which is really quite appropriate for the Empress, especially when you consider all of her forms, even though it is a very unusual way to express the theme. Really, I have to revist this and find better integration. I'm going to take a hands-off approach to the tone of the card in favor of integration & vividness, and just see how it all falls together.
 

karacol

to Star Spirit

Thank you very much, Star Spirit, I certainly think you are correct that the most important thing is the personal vision. Otherwise, it's not much of a quest (or Fools journey...) after all! My purpose for getting advice is to broaden my vision, so I have to be aware of the trap of being accomodating.

:D
 

karacol

to being_chrysalis

I'm really happy you like the 8 of pentacles so much.

And I'm glad you see the Kali connection in the Empress card. That theme kind of crept in there unannounced (my favorite way of finding imagery) but you are absolutely right that it needs a boost. I think the theme is there, but the feeling is flat. This should be a very engaging card, especially if it's going to involve Kali...

The potential in the Empress is really great, and I have work to do to get that across.
 

being_chrysalis

When I saw the card, two things came to mind - you can use or discard these ideas at will (of course!)

One - maybe the darkness could be a warmer darkness - brown/red/gold hues rather than the black/blue/grey hues...

the other thing I saw was a radiance from the unborn child - like a gold light that might pick up highlights/cast shadows on the mother's arms/face/hair.. that would integrate the two elements (mother and child) more. Not too much though b/c it is a dark card and that's one of the elements that lends the kali-like aspect. :)
 

karacol

TO being_chrysalis

being_chrysalis said:
I saw was a radiance from the unborn child - like a gold light that might pick up highlights/cast shadows on the mother's arms/face/hair..QUOTE]

Those are all very insightful, good suggestions. I will definitely experiment with the image based on what you said. I especially like the idea about the radiance... it seems like that would make the gemini an active, as well as receptive aspect.
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Orange-Eyed Raven

The imagery seems quite dark, which I enjoy. I like the design for the back & I also like The Empress card. Very nice!

~Victor~
 

lizziecat

I find the deck quite beautiful and artistic. I'm not very knowledgable about Tarot symbolism so I can't speak to that, but I am impressed with the overall design and "feel" of the imagery - keep up the good work!
 
A New Gay Themed Tarot. Publishers and Prints