REBECCA TOWNLEY Context and Consolidation LB650
My Brief for this project is to illustrate some Tarot Cards and as my essay is exploring the importance of symbols within Tarot Cards I want to play around with meanings and symbols within the set I do.
Looking on Pinterest for more modern illustration styled tarot cards. This helped to think about colours and theme. A lot of these have a floral aspect and mainly targeted towards females and most of them have step away from the more tradition tarot cards that have a lot of symbols embedded within them. This got me thinking about religious symbols within art and I thought about my tarot cards having some religious imagery in the cards, this will either give the cards a whole new meaning or support it further. I definitely liked the more simple style tarot cards (bottom right) and the floral theme that are throught a lot of them so would like to incorperate that to my cards.
INSPIRATION
RELIGIOUS SYMBOLS
I first looked into Buddhism as it has a lot of meaning behind its art, I read the book “Reading Buddhist Art� by Meher McArthur which really helped me get an understand a lot of their artwork. After doing a few sketches in my style to see how it might look for the tarot cards, I then realised how intricate the artwork was I thought it would not go with my more simple style tarots. Although not all of it was successful it was a good step towards the right direction as a massive symbol in Buddhism is the lotus flower and this went with the floral theme that I liked from my mood board.
TAROT + FLOWERS = LOVE
I was looking into the representation and meaning of flowers in spells, this stemmed after researching meanings within religion. I found I took more interest in the flower side of it- i.e. the lotus flower in Buddhism. After finding all these flowers that meant love, I then went back to my tarot cards and as ‘the lovers’ is the card meaning love and relationships (friends, family and romantically) I thought it would be fitting to combine them both.
I did not know what style I was going to go for so I traced my original drawing in three different ways. However once i had done this it was quite interesting to see how they looked layered together. Especially with the thickest lines at the back (creating a shadow), then the colour, then the thin line outlining it all nicely
I got this information from “The Practical Witches Almanac”
COLOUR MOOD BOARD
I made a mood board, I took inspiration from the tarots on my ‘inspiration’ page as I really liked the pink but thought black might be too harsh so wanted to go with a deep green and ideally I wanted gold for a bit of pop but could not get the metallic effect so instead went with a mustard yellow that did the job nicely. I feel these colours work very well together and link in with the femininity of tarot cards.
This is my original sketch with all the flowers that mean love in. Choosing colours was difficult as along with the style this is one of the main things that links the deck together.
On Photoshop these colours looked a lot lighter however when I exported it unfortunately they have come out a lot darker.
ANIMATING
After illustrating my first example of ‘the lovers’ tarot cards including the flowers that represent love I had a vision of the flowers grown into the final form of the tarot. To do this I did a frame by frame animation on Photoshop. I chose this animation style as I thought the movement would go well with the style as if the flowers were moving in the breeze, not only this but the way I wanted them to have the buds bloom into a flower this was the only way to hit my vision. Here are some frames from the animation of the flowers growing
Once I animated the flowers I then added the frame and boiled the hands and was just going to make the banner and text still then realised it would look better and be more interesting to see it slowly unfold and the text to look like its being written on. Without the text moving it would have just been the flowers growing then boil and that be it, so having that unfold really helped it be more entertaining.
After speaking to my peers at a group critical evaluation we discussed the significance of the flowers and how they should represent the meaning reather than the human body, which I thought was an interesting choice as origanally tarot cards have a human figure in center frame, but I like the idea of using flowers and symbols being used to show the tarot meaning and the fact it would make the deck more unique.
EVOLVING
My initial idea was to do 6 really deatailed and maybe animated cards but my peers suggested that doing the full smaller deck (22) would make more sense and look better being a complete set. This I agreed on especially as I liked the more simple tarot cards on my ‘inspiration’ page. Although I thought this was a good direction for my work to go in, I was disappointed that I did not get to use my personal style of illustrated tpeople that initially I thought I would include. (Like the picture to the left that I drew last year that in part inspired this project).
After this I started looking at more tarot cards that just use symbols to get inspiration, (which I need especially for some cards like the hanged man). I know the illustration to the right is not a tarot but I really like the style of illustrating especially on the brown paper- it reminded me of the love flowers I drew which I thought worked really well so wanted to bring that back into the new style of cards.
I really like this style to the far right how it looks like its all continuous line drawing and just very sketchy, its very chic. The centre one is good inspiration on how to correlate flowers and symbols together, its very basic and edgy. The top cards are interesting because they feel like they are from a science book very old school. I think I am going to take aspects from each of these and try and add my own spin.
TESTING STYLES The simplicity of the symbol only tarot cards I really like, especially the minimal use of colour. I then went on to do some of my own testing. I was just going to leave it black and white but the colour of the flowers are almost just as important as the flowers that I have chosen have a big part in the meaning.
This was an experiment with boarders and type. I thought the boarder was way too messy and that the type was not in keeping. I thought my handwriting looked more in style.
I started drawing my tarot cards on Photoshop but decided that I should do them in illustrator so that I can blow some of them up for posters and them not become pixelated.
After looking at these two tarots they looked too plane and needed something, I adding a paper texture over to it but I thought it did not look clean enough, it looked like I had ripped out a page from my sketchbook. I then thought about reversing the colours so black background with white text and I did like the look of this but felt it was just too dark. So I looked back into adding colour but it looked very flat, I then combined this with the texture and it looked much better.
However once looking at the textures ppi it would not scale well with the vector illustrations. From this I then started scanning my own textures with a ppi of 1,200 which makes it a lot more usable and allows you to scale the background with the vector illustration without pixelation. I liked both these options and I wanted to experiment with the look of brown paper as I drew some of my initial flowers on it and like the look. If I was printing straight onto brown card for the deck of cards I would like the style but I think it would look weird when printed on white paper trying to be brown paper. Another reason I’m choosing to go with the blue crinkled paper is that it looks a lot brighter and a bit different.
THE WORLD The world means: successful, possibilities, fulfilment and achievement. The flowers that related to this are statics (mainly meaning successful), they normally come in bunched and are with multiple colours. I considered drawing them individually but thought it would not give the bunch effect so instead i drew a background of green and layered over the multiple colours with a paintbrush tool in illustrator, this representing the bunch a lot more and made sure it was clear and not too messy.
Most of the tarot cards I looked at all had boarders, as you have seen I have tried a few but personally I thought they just made it look too messy, however, i thought they still had to have something to show consistency and to frame the words. That’s why I went with something very simple as the dots but still in theme- I’m very happy with my choice. I was just going to leave the world with a plain blue background however I felt it did not draw your eye to it as much and the colours of the flowers got lost. Whereas, the white really brings it all together and gives it a nice focus point.
THE LOVERS
I am very pleased with my third and final attempt at ‘The Lovers’, taking sections of each of them has really helped it evolve. I really liked the blue I chose for ‘The World” however after it being on the new ‘The Lovers” I felt it did not click as nicely, so I went back to my ‘inspiration’ page and saw the “Modern Witches Tarot Deck” that had a different colour for each card so decided I would try that and it worked really well. I will keep each card in a chalky shade so they are all in keeping.
The meaning of the lovers: falling in love, commitment, choice and partnership. Due to this card obviously meaning love I then chose to do the flowers that mean love which are: red roses, lavender, clover, cinquefoil and jasmine. They symbol I represented was a love heart, the most commonly known symbol of love.
DEATH The meaning of Death is: the end of something, profound change and failure, but can also represent a physical death. In the eyes and nose of the skull I drew deathly nightshade flowers and berries. I felt I could’ve gone for a few things to symbolise death, like the scythe, the grim reaper or a dead flower. Although I had these options I thought the skull was a strong choice as its very bold and clear. Using charcoal grey kept it in theme of my chalky colours and was the obvious choice of colour for death. The dark colour meant it was hard to see the clack outline so I changed it to white which I am very happy as it really jumps out of the page.
THE DEVIL The Devil means: temptation, unhealthy relationship, fear and materialism. Apple blossom is well known for meaning temptation because of the tree in Adam and Eve. I tried to use he leaves to show devil horns and a tail. The red was the clear colour to go for as it is the devil card and also represents fear.
THE STAR
The Star means: health, opportunity and inspiration, I chose to go with the flowers meaning health which are: lavender, pansy, chamomile and dandelions. I went with a navy colour for the night sky and felt the white out lines worked well for the twinkle effect. The pouring motion from the cup is a very important part of the Star tarot so felt I should give that the main focus and have the flowers flowing down. To make it clear it the Star tarot I added stars all around it.
THE MOON
The Moon tarot card means: difficult period, insecurity, development and fear. Lily’s mean development and the colour works nicely with the moon. I used a deep purple for it to be like the night sky (like the Star tarot) the white outline works well with the moon glow aspect.
THE SUN
The Sun tarot meaning is: good fortune, happiness, joy harmony. The universal flower of happiness is the sunflower and is the obvious chose for this tarot. I added a light yellow background as yellow also means happiness.
THE TOWER The Tower means: expect the unexpected, massive change, revelation and awakening. The flower I chose was the lotus as it means awakening and also it looks like flames of a fire and the tower in the tarot is on fire. The Tower is on fire because it represents sudden change. The colours I used were influenced by the fire.
THE HANGED MAN
The Hanged Man meaning is: missing opportunity, surrender, sacrifice and letting go. The willow tree means surrender so I tried to represent the long leafy branches blowing in the wind, like it is letting go. I felt like it was appropriate to have very earthy colours for this card
THE FOOL The meaning of the Fool is: new beginnings, faith, future, inexperienced and beginners luck. The daffodil means new beginnings (that’s why it is associated with spring) and the clover/shamrock means luck. I also used marigolds as they are known as the jester flower and as I used the jesters hat I thought it was only appropriate. I struggled choosing a colour and originally went with a peach but it was brought to my attention it was difficult to see the flowers. I thought the green went well with the flowers and complimented the clovers and shamrocks.
JUDGMENT
Judgement means: Decision making, redemption and to let go/forgive the past. The flowers that mean forgiveness are purple hyacinths. These flowers are usually grouped together so I tried to use their usual shape and then draw around it the gavel. I think the gavel is a clear and understanding symbol of judgement.
JUSTICE
The meaning of Justice is: Fairness, Balance and obviously justice. The flower that means justice is a purple chrysanthemum. I went with the justice scales as they are the main symbol within the justice card. I choice yellow as the background colour as I liked the contrast between the two colours.
THE HIGH PRIESTESS The High Priestess means: passivity, mystery, hidden talent. The pomegranate is consistent within the high priestess and is a symbol of fertility and divine feminine. The flowers either side of the pomegranate are blue rainflower which mean mystery. These are within a horned diadem (crown) wish shows her status as a ruler and her divine knowledge.
THE POPE The Pope means: seeking counsel/advice, marriage, tradition and religion. As its a very religious card I went with the religious meaning for the flowers which are pansy’s and lily’s. These flowers went perfectly with the colouring of the Popes hat. As its such a powerful card I chose a dark purple as the background colour. I wanted it to be dark so the the outline and writing could be white for purity and religion.
THE EMPRESS
The Empress means: maternal influence/care, pregnancy, new opportunity. The most maternal flower was carnations in peach, and red roses. The shield is in the Empress’ cards and is very important as it means love, romance and protection. (Also what the rose means) I was not going to fill in the shield but when looking back at it I can realised the flowers got lost and as the stars were already yellow I thought I would use the same colour for the shield and really highlight the red rose with deep red. The 12 stars are usually above the Empress’ head and means she has wisdom as she connects to the 12 months of zodiac. I realised you couldn’t see the stars so added a little glow behind them and I really like this little added affect.
THE EMPEROR The meaning of the Emperor is: power, leadership and authority. The flower that means power is gladiolus. I did the background a royal purple as it is the most powerful colour, this stems from it being the hardest and most expensive colour to dye fabric. The globus is similar to the royal purple as it symbols authority. I added the gold shade to the background to the globus as they are usually gold and mainly to make it easier to see the flowers. The card overall symbolises authority in life.
THE WHEEL OF FORTUNE The meaning of The Wheel of Fortune is: chance, luck and opportunity. The center of the wheel is lilac, the next layer are daffodils and the outer flowers are pimpernels, all of these mean change. I chose the red background as it complemented the flowers (especially the pimpernels).
THE CHARIOT
The Chariot means: will power, overcoming, drive and confidence. The flower of confidence is lilac which are center of the chariot and magnolia means drive which is on the wheel and edges. I did the background blue as it symbolises will power.
TEMPERANCE Temperance means: Balance, moderation and harmony. The flowers that mean harmony are cosmos nigella and phonx, which are pouring from one cup to the other. The pouring motion is symbolic of the flow and alchemy of life. I chose the colour green as it means balance but had to experiment with a few shades (below) and once I decided I realised the black was too subtle so changed it to white which works really well with the colour of the flowers.
STRENGTH
The meaning of the Strength card is: inner strength, vitality, potency, confidence and self belief. The flower meaning strength is the gladiolus, as I’ve used this flower on a few cards and I wanted to make it really big to show its strength. I used the fist as it is the universal sign for strength and power. I went with the colour orange instead of read as the emotion it invokes is happier than red and goes with the tarot meaning.
THE MAGICIAN The meaning of the Magician is: strong, powerful and resourceful. The flowers in the center of the wand are gladiolus, which as I’ve stated mean strength. The flowers at the top and bottom of the wand are protea which means power. The infinity symbol means that it has access to unlimited power and is very important to this card so made sure I included it. I chose the colour red as it means power.
THE HERMIT
The Hermit means: soul searching, introspection and solitude. The flowers that mean loneliness and solitude are heather and lavender which I filled the shell of the crab with. I chose the crab because there was no significant symbols within the card so I thought it would be the easiest way to identify hermit.
EVALUATION. In my essay I am looking at the importance of symbols within Tarot Cards and how they have evolved to have different meaning from different illustrators and some of the deeper meanings are being lost. Due to this research I knew which symbols to choose that represent the card, for example the Empress card has the shield and star that relate very strongly to the meaning of the card. However saying this I stuck to one main symbol to each card which does mean some of the symbolic messages are being lost, but I have tried to reinforce the meaning of the cards with the flowers. The meaning of the flowers are very important but obviously each flower can mean multiple things, such as the lilac being in both The Wheel of Fortune and The Chariot and it meaning both opportunity and confidence this is where the flowers are not only reinforcing the meaning of each card but also adding a whole new meaning. I love how the tarots have given more meaning to the my cards as I feel it has made them grow and almost become a more stand out deck. I also find the use of flowers really interesting as they are very typically feminine and so are tarot cards, as throughout history they were mainly only read by women. Visually I am very pleased with the 22 card deck, I am proud of the theme and that although they are all in different colours they still are consistent with each other, I think the fact I used the same pen effect, layout and overlay really helped this. Throughout my research I always wanted them to be simple, however, I feel next time I would try and include more detail and reintroduce people but feel if I did this I would only do about 6 as they would be very time consuming and try to animated half of them like I did with the Lovers first drawing. Ultimately, I feel this project has really helped me grow as an artist and illustrator as I did not just have one idea and stick to it I would listen to my peers and reevaluate the work I have down and learnt that trial and error is just a part of evolving. From this I am proud of where the final deck of Tarot Card and how they have met my initial brief as I have explored the symbols and meanings of tarot cards and have reinvented my own set.