Luna's Crone
i just got a good look at your glasses when i checked out. do they have x-ray vision!!!??? cuz i want a pair if they do. and they certainly look much better then the ones that didn't work from the comic books.
Ciro Marchetti Marseille-Inspired Deck
Luna's Crone
aw...then maybe i am safe.
earthair
I really like the way it takes a long time to get it out of the box, remove it from the bag, and then unwrap the black tissue- it's like tarot foreplay
The legless Cavaliers are an unusual choice. Personally I would prefer some horses. If I'm being honest I think that the lack of horses may be a deal breaker for many people and possibly me, as it's such an important feature of TdM. All the fabric wafting around under them instead of a horse doesn't give me the sense of purpose, travel and action.
The minors feature a few familiar faces/figures from his previous decks, who have been copied into this one- again I think some of the copying is a little too obvious.
The concept is brilliant, the colours and majors I like, but if I could wave a magic wand, I'd repaint the boy's face for 6 of Cups which is copied from T of Dreams, also I'd make 9 of wands soldier different from the same in Gilded Tarot, and... add horses. I need horses!
I bought this deck 2nd hand and was lucky enough to read this thread and discover there is a pdf to read (and thankful for WWolfy's excellent email retrieval
) but for other people who might get this deck in trade, maybe Ciro could put a link or purchase option on the website?cirom
Many people didn't notice there was a link to the pdf included in the shipping confirmation e-mail we send out. But I will happily send it again to any customers who request it. I wont offer it for sale because its already part of the purchase..
I would like to address a couple of points though. The inclusion in the minors of many scenes from my previous decks is quite deliberate and will of course also be quite obvious for those that may also own those decks...that direct connection was the point and is directly referenced in the PDF. It wasn't in some way intended as trying to get away with a re-use hoping no one would notice.
As for the horseless knights, I can see that it might be an issue, but Its a similar approach to the one I used in the Legacy of the Divine, where I only depicted helmets. My rational is that knights, like any uniformed personnel from soldiers to police to sports teams to doctors, who they are as individuals are often secondary to the uniforms they wear. They may indeed have personal characters, be good or bad individuals, friend or foe, but they are initially judged and perceived by their uniforms, the significance of a uniform is what defines them first and foremost. So i emphasis that aspect in a decorative way by visually reinforcing the knights association to its suit and its profession, in this case conceptually defending/enforcing the bidding of his master the king.... That takes priority in my mind over the rather redundant need to clarify who his is by having him mounted on a horse. An approach also referenced in the PDF, I realize it won't be the preference or best option for everyone but i wanted to at least explain my approach... I do encourage people to read the document, its not a great work of literature by any means (in fact it should really have had a better proof read) and you wont learn anything about reading Tarot from it, but it does provide some explanation to why this. or why not that....
I would like to address a couple of points though. The inclusion in the minors of many scenes from my previous decks is quite deliberate and will of course also be quite obvious for those that may also own those decks...that direct connection was the point and is directly referenced in the PDF. It wasn't in some way intended as trying to get away with a re-use hoping no one would notice.
As for the horseless knights, I can see that it might be an issue, but Its a similar approach to the one I used in the Legacy of the Divine, where I only depicted helmets. My rational is that knights, like any uniformed personnel from soldiers to police to sports teams to doctors, who they are as individuals are often secondary to the uniforms they wear. They may indeed have personal characters, be good or bad individuals, friend or foe, but they are initially judged and perceived by their uniforms, the significance of a uniform is what defines them first and foremost. So i emphasis that aspect in a decorative way by visually reinforcing the knights association to its suit and its profession, in this case conceptually defending/enforcing the bidding of his master the king.... That takes priority in my mind over the rather redundant need to clarify who his is by having him mounted on a horse. An approach also referenced in the PDF, I realize it won't be the preference or best option for everyone but i wanted to at least explain my approach... I do encourage people to read the document, its not a great work of literature by any means (in fact it should really have had a better proof read) and you wont learn anything about reading Tarot from it, but it does provide some explanation to why this. or why not that....
earthair
Hi
I think with the minors that the copied quotes from your earlier decks which work the best are the ones without the people, because the artwork of your faces date the decks into distinct periods- my favourite minors are the magpie and the falcon. I singled out the 6 of cups because I find the boy's face a bit Stepford and Hallmark-ish. It's a card I don't like in TofDreams so I wasn't happy to see it haunting another deck, and I guess the same thing could happen for other people, who don't want to be reminded of cards with specific meanings from other decks.
Personally for my tastes I would like all the minors to be people-less; an essence of an object from previous decks is all you need.
If you ever want to test the water, consider releasing the deck without any illustrations in the minors- I think it would sell very well.
Regarding the pdf, which I've now read
, I think you could add far more at the end on the courts and minors- why you chose that particular image from that deck.cirom
Hi
I singled out the 6 of cups because I find the boy's face a bit Stepford and Hallmark-ish. It's a card I don't like in TofDreams so I wasn't happy to see it haunting another deck, and I guess the same thing could happen for other people, who don't want to be reminded of cards with specific meanings from other decks.
If you ever want to test the water, consider releasing the deck without any illustrations in the minors- I think it would sell very well.
Regarding the pdf, which I've now read
Well I appreciate your time in providing your feedback.
Its unfortunate you didn't like the boys face and find it haunting you yet again after all these years, I'm not sure how bad being a "bit like Stepford and Hallmark" is supposed to be. But if you really need an explanation of why that choice, its because i think he looks attractive and a kind of quintessential "boy" but then I'm biased, its because its my son at the age of 8. Which goes to show that there are some things that are apparently even more subjective than tarot card imagery, and thats opinions about other peoples kids, LOL.
As for the potential of a variation of this deck without the inserts, selling well.....possibly, but then it would undermine the very objective of this exercise, namely to function in its own right but also serve as a bridge for those coming from a WCS background, most of whom like yourself probably have one of my other decks (thanks for being repeat customer BTW) But ultimately it is what it is, I will live with my choices....
earthair
Aha
moment. It makes sense now! When I said Stepford and Hallmark, I use that phrase to mean too perfect, like Stepford Wives (the film) and Hallmark greetings cards. No child I know is that perrrrfect! But if it's your own son then of course you would paint him in this light! This conversation has just unlocked this card for me
Thanks.cirom
Thank you.... It was kind of you to accept my response. For what its worth the girl from that original Tarot of Dreams card was also my daughter, so yes absolutely bias (not to mention free models), But they were good well behaved happy kids, it made perfect conceptual sense (to me) to use that imagery.
Lee
Actually there are horses on the Knights -- albeit small ones (look on top!).
