Studio Brief 1 - Playing Cards in the Victoria & Albert Museum

This book contains several examples of tarot cards and briefly discusses their origins. The root of the symbolic picture card of the tarot is unknown but it has been suggested that the 22 atutti (picture cards) were derived from the mysteries of ancient Egypt.

I began by finding and researching the tarot cards in the book that I thought had a particularly good aesthetic and colour scheme. This was so I could make something that could reflect the tarot style of the 19th century well, which was the period Fado was born.

Pack of 78, Italian suits, 1748 Arnoult, colour lithographs, 11.9 x 6.2 cm

I particularly liked this pack because of the detailed faces, using minimal colour but still appearing considered and elegant. Each pack has been made using lithiography, this is 'a printing process that uses a flat stone or metal plate on which the image areas are worked using a greasy substance so that the ink will adhere to them by, while the non-image areas are made ink-repellent.' This could be a method of production I look at to maintain authenticity. Something that is particularly evident is the use of Roman numerals rather than numbers, this is something I will need to remember. 

Pamela Colman Smith, pack of 78 cartomantic tarots, London, 1910, colour lithographs,11.9 x 7cm

These designs work well for the theme I'm hoping to explore, which is the sea, the poor, longing and loss. The designs use a very cool colour scheme and lots of natural imagery, some of them show use of fantasy imagery - the Chariot card specifically references Egyptian origins. The Ace of Swords has quite a magical vibe to it, this look of legend is something I want to carry forward.

Alessandro Viassone, pack of 78 Piedmontese tarots, 1932, colour lithographs, 10.6 x 6.1cm

These cards take a more unusual approach of illustration, with faces and bodies that are less in proportion with a distinct focus on curves. The reflections are also a distinctive part of this pack, this works to make it seem mystical and strange. Perhaps I could look at mirroring as an idea later on. It is becoming clear that Tarot is entirely an art form, and the constraints hold a lot of opportunity.