Suzanne Triester is the creator of the HEXEN 2.0 Tarot deck. And from the looks of it, it’s a Tarot reading conspiracy theorists’ dream deck.
Loosely based on the Golden Dawn system, Triester’s HEXEN 2.0 Tarot depicts the interconnected histories of the computer, the internet, counterculture, cybernetics, social engineering, government and military research projects, and the occult.
It’s a sequel to HEXEN 2039, and brings together large-scale alchemical diagrams, photo-text works, a film representing a cybernetic séance, and the Tarot deck.
The show runs through May 1st, and it’s free! The deck isn’t available yet, but it will be soon. I’ve got it on my wish list already.
I’ve written before about divination with food. There was the tortilla reading with Jorge Rojas, and more recently Jemima Packington reading asparagus.
But Frankovich has his own technique, and it’s directly connected to the Tarot. He creates his deck out of canned goods, selecting each item for its correspondence to a Major Arcana card.
For instance, in one performance, he chose baked beans to represent Death, a nod I’m guessing to the putrification process inherent in transformation.
After making all his selections, he removes the labels from the 22 cans so that no one knows what’s inside.
Then as in any Tarot reading, he asks his querant to choose their cans. He opens them up, reads them as you might cards, then cooks up a meal using those particular ingredients.
It’s a brilliant idea, combining the rituals of reading with eating.
By ingesting your reading, you’re literally taking it in, making it physically part of you, not just something you see or hear.
All the senses are involved. You see it, hear it be described and can listen to it cook. You smell it, touch it with you mouth, and taste it. It’s like the Empress herself is reading for you.
I know Frankovich meant this as a performance piece, but I wish he’d offer his readings to the general public. I’d love to get one. And it’s always a pleasure to have someone cook for me.
ShadowFox has been busy making Tarot decks for the last 11 years, and his work is impressive – the Legends of Rock Tarot, the Minimal E. Stick Tarot, the Tarot Progressive, the Ultimate Tarot, the ShadowFox Tarot, and his newest, the Tarot Deck of Heroes.
And he’s not done yet … in 2013 he’ll be releasing the Tarot of the Night, followed by the Chromillennium Tarot and the Feminine Devine Tarot.
That’s a lot of decks for one man! I can’t wait to hear what he has to say about them all. Or at least what he has to say about his latest, the brooding and powerful Tarot Deck of Heroes.
I wrote about this Kickstarter project last year, but unfortunately, the artist wasn’t able to reach her goal at the time and it was put on hold for a moment.
But the Stolen Child Tarot has made a reappearance, and this time Monica Knighton, creator of the Tarot of the Dead, has already raised the funds she needs to print her new 24 card deck.
Though she’s met her goal, I’m writing about her project again anyway, just in case you missed it before and/or didn’t know that there was a new opportunity to get yourself a copy.
The Stolen Child Tarot is inspired by the poem of the same name by William Butler Yeats. It features changeling children and magical creatures of the natural world.
In it, the mystic meets the adorable, and no adult humans are allowed.
But he won’t be talking about that deck tonight, he’s got a brand new one coming out in June, and we can’t wait to hear all about it.
Lake
Wanless’ new Sustain Yourself Cards aren’t traditional Tarot, but rather 101 photomontage cards organized into five domains – Elemental, Mineral, Plant, Animal, and Human.
Through the oracle deck and its companion book, Handbook to Live Well and Long, Wanless explores the power of intuition and creativity to sustain ourselves.
He’s hoping the cards will help us to re-charge, re-store, re-start and re-new, and he’s going to show us how.
But his first deck, the Gilded Tarot, is still an all time favourite, and within the Tarot world, it’s a smash hit sensation.
It’s sold over 250,000 copies worldwide, with translations available in Czech, Russian, Slovenian, Greek, German, Hungarian, Polish, Spanish, French, and Chinese.
But Marchetti’s still not completely satisfied. He’s thrilled with the incredible reception his deck has received, but he wants the deck itself to be even better.
Since he made the Gilded, the technology he used has developed way beyond what it was, and he himself has learnt a lot more about Tarot through the years.
So he’s gone ahead and redone it, making it bigger, and more detailed, and with actual gilding on the sides of the cards.
It’ll be self-published, and available only through Marchetti’s website. And it’s got a new name – the Gilded Tarot Royale.
Take a look at the video below to see images from the new cards. And go to his site to look at comparisons between the original version and the new one.
The old ones were nice, but the new ones are gorgeous.
Ciro was a guest on Beyond Worlds just last Sunday, and he talked about his new deck. Take a listen here …
Not only is Givin the designer of a charming new deck for cats and their humans, she’s actually a cat doctor. A vetrinarian since 1982, she’s been working specifically with felines since 1988.
Her current interests include behavior and individual feline temperament types, environmental enrichment, and prevention of obesity.
She’s also interested in restoring cats to the god-like status they held in ancient Egypt.
Which brings us back to the Cat’s Eye Tarot – definitely a deck for cat lovers. With virtually no human intrusion, cats are featured in every card. And they’re adorable.
Givin’s understanding of feline behaviour is evident throughout. Though the deck follows the general themes in the Rider Waite Smith Tarot, it tells the story from a cat’s point of view.
My cat Carl approves, and will probably be listening to the show.
Join him, and us live in the chat room, or call in at (646) 200-0765.
This IndieGoGo project isn’t really about Tarot, but it does involve the production of a deck of cards meant to be used for empowerment, specifically, the empowerment of actors.
Acting Gemz is an instructional/oracular 33-card deck, designed by Powell Lawrence and illustrated by Devin E. Haqq.
It’s instructional in the sense that each card describes a technique actors can use to release their creative potential.
One card might advise on an attitude to take towards an audition. Another might be an exercise in keeping ‘secrets’. Yet another might say ‘don’t stop living just because you’re acting.’
The oracular part of course is that it’s meant to be used as most oracle or Tarot decks are used.
You randomly pull a card and expect synchronicity to provide you with the perfect message for your needs.
The idea sounds like fun. I wonder what actors think of it.
Lawrence is trying to raise money to print the deck and as with all IndieGoGo projects, he’s offering some perks to people who help make the project happen.
Take a look at his page to see what they are, and to see pictures of some of the cards.
