DEATH
Scared you, didn't I? :)~
Actually, the title for this post IS appropriate... but in a figurative sense, not a literal one. See, tonight I completed the first of three canvases for a Tarot deck project I'm part of at www.illustratedatcs.com, and the card I completed is DEATH.
I don't know much about tarot and am participating for aesthetic reasons, and reasons of curiosity. But I'm really intrigued by it and I've been doing some reading. It seems in many ways to be a sort of "Rorshach inkblot test" -- a concept that's very familiar to me from my psych major years at UCLA. In other words, the tarot deck seems more like a tool for viewing one's own inner processes, a tool onto which one projects the subconscious (via interpretation of the cards), rather than some kind of magical, mystical, witchcraft kind of thing, which is kinda what I (clearly, naively) thought about it previously. Interesting stuff! And there are some truly beautiful decks, from a purely artistic point of view, too. My favorite site for browsing and learning is Aeclectic Tarot... just in case you're curious, too.
Back on topic, though...
Here's my finished card, DEATH. I worked larger than usual, on a 5x7 piece of board, using inks and some paint and pencil. When I was finished with all the hand drawn elements and coloring and fixatives, I scanned it into Photoshop and perfected it digitally as the very last step. I'm convinced I've lost about twenty billion brain cells today, by spraying fixative in my air-conditioned -- and therefore, not ventilated -- house. That's a big no-no. I'll do better next time.
This deck has a due date of May 15 and will be printed shortly thereafter. The theme of the deck is ZETTI TAROT. The title, per se, is still undecided. I believe there's a plan in motion to print copies of the deck professionally and make them available for purchase at a price unbeknownst to me, because that's out of my area and purview. I'll post here when I have more details! In the meantime, I'm having a grand time watching the deck come together. There are some fantastic cards being produced by the artists at that site. Can't wait to see the finished deck!
Edited 4/30/08 to add: The due date for artwork on this project has been pushed out to mid June. Decks will be finished (with border and backside) and printed after that. I'm hoping to have a finished deck to share, and point you toward for purchase, in July or August. Thanks!
Gorgeous! You should be an illustrator for books etc. Her eye is mesmerising, I'm totally drawn to it.
Hugs, Sarah x
Posted by: Sarah | April 29, 2008 at 02:11 AM
..ooooh, adore her---simply love the colors involved! I like this one and your Alice series best. =) Simply lovely.
Posted by: Amelia | April 29, 2008 at 07:34 AM
Shel, WOW I love it! I've known you were talented since our UCLA days together, but I am still blown away. I agree with Sarah - her eye is mesmerizing! The whole composition is fabulous! I recently started learning Tarot and doing readings for friends, it's great fun and you described it beautifully. Wish I had a deck of ALL your art, this is my favorite death card I've ever seen! :) Love ya, Laur
Posted by: Laura | April 29, 2008 at 03:39 PM
Love it Shel! You've got that creepy/cute look totally down... Creepy/cute.... I find it completely mesmerizing.
I used to mess around with tarot in my younger years. I've had way too much coffee today, so I'm just rambling, but the whole tarot thing reminded me of these other cards I used to play with too, and I bet you would just absolutely completely dig these, if you haven't already heard of them....
http://www.amazon.com/Creative-Whack-Pack-Roger-Oech/dp/0880793589
Off to dig mine out of the basement. I think I could USE them again!
Posted by: Kim Basta | April 30, 2008 at 02:53 PM