I’ll start with the Court cards or Royals since someone asked me about them recently and they are possibly the most obtuse re-imagining of the traditional imagery of tarot. Though some purely geometric and abstract decks have been created, since my cards are monochrome, they may appear quite stark to some. The forms I’ve used are based on a synthesis of thought from many different sources over many years. Many rivers dabbled in but nothing too scholarly really. According to my holistic leaning on human psychology, as much as I find any doctrine fascinating, I always jump ship before the hooks sink too deep. Sacred geometry, kabbalistic symbols, the i’ching, modern psychological theory (vaguely), prehistoric cave paintings and pre-Judeo-christian sacred architecture were all buzzing around my head as I attempted to create diagrammatic stories which were intuitive for me.
So let's break it down. The central or dominant shape represents the traditional element for that suit. I chose each shape based on the properties of its construction and its historical context. That shape then undergoes a transformation and interaction with the other elements through the four stages represented by the Page, Knight, Queen and King.
Steel is the symbol I've used for the swords governed by the element "air". A counter intuitive pairing at first but the intellect which this suit exemplifies is rife with contradictions. Certainly, swords in the tarot are more often held aloft than thrust into flesh but I think the relevance of this pairing is better understood through the chemistry of metal, especially an alloy like steel. As hard and heavy as it often appears it is really a malleable and transitional material. It can exist in many states but it takes force and energy to change between them. When we're young the fire element is high and the metal of the mind is basically molten and changing quickly. But as we age it gradually cools and hardens into set patterns and habits. It requires more energy to get it flowing again. Depending on events in your life and your own perspective your mind can anneal gradually into a flexible state, one that can bend to cope with impact, or it can be quenched quickly onto a sharp but brittle edge.. anyway thats probably about as far as I can stretch that metaphor! The shape I've used on these court cards is a diamond constructed from two equilateral triangles. This references the alchemical symbols for fire and for water and combines them but does not overlap them. Air is the element of the intellect. In my interpretation much of eastern philosophy depicts a smart person as drawing from the creative, spontaneous parts of their personality as well as the introspective and deeper emotions while letting neither fully govern their will and allowing a greater logic to take the upper hand in any altercation. The center of the diamond on the join between the fire and water elements so is contained by nether. It is a very rigid shape also and reminiscent of the kind of crystal structures contained by hardened metal. It rests on one vertex however so is not stabilized by contact with the earth, only by its own rigidity. I could see this character forming from the shape, rolling up onto its point in order to gain height and superiority at the cost of some stability.
.. now, in the interest of me not getting fed up with this blog before its even started I'll leave water and stone 'till later. Thanks for reading. TBC
An alchemical symbol chosen for each suit is incorporated into the design as well and is repeated according to the sequence 1-4 showing how at each stage of the transformation the pure element remains intact, though no single phase should be considered representative of that element primus.
I’ll go into an overview of each suit now and tackle each card individually and the narrative between them later.
Wood is the symbol I've chosen for the suit of fire, the wands. In many ways the creative "fire" represented by this suit is experienced through its fuel. If this force is a primal energy as described by many scholars of tarot then we only experience it AS its fuel. It consumes us as we draw light and warmth from it. The shape is an upward pointing equilateral triangle; also the alchemical symbol for the element of fire and one half of the star of David which represents this primal creative energy. As the shape of the great pyramids it stands as a monument to the ultimate transition of energy from life into death. As a three sided shape resting on one edge it is incredibly stable though intuitively dynamic as it has an odd number of rotational symmetries. I see this as a neat analogue for the creative force as I understand it, something like the the geometrical equivalent of the phrase “The only constant is change”. Of course there are many other shapes that could say that but they don’t have the other historical baggage.
Steel is the symbol I've used for the swords governed by the element "air". A counter intuitive pairing at first but the intellect which this suit exemplifies is rife with contradictions. Certainly, swords in the tarot are more often held aloft than thrust into flesh but I think the relevance of this pairing is better understood through the chemistry of metal, especially an alloy like steel. As hard and heavy as it often appears it is really a malleable and transitional material. It can exist in many states but it takes force and energy to change between them. When we're young the fire element is high and the metal of the mind is basically molten and changing quickly. But as we age it gradually cools and hardens into set patterns and habits. It requires more energy to get it flowing again. Depending on events in your life and your own perspective your mind can anneal gradually into a flexible state, one that can bend to cope with impact, or it can be quenched quickly onto a sharp but brittle edge.. anyway thats probably about as far as I can stretch that metaphor! The shape I've used on these court cards is a diamond constructed from two equilateral triangles. This references the alchemical symbols for fire and for water and combines them but does not overlap them. Air is the element of the intellect. In my interpretation much of eastern philosophy depicts a smart person as drawing from the creative, spontaneous parts of their personality as well as the introspective and deeper emotions while letting neither fully govern their will and allowing a greater logic to take the upper hand in any altercation. The center of the diamond on the join between the fire and water elements so is contained by nether. It is a very rigid shape also and reminiscent of the kind of crystal structures contained by hardened metal. It rests on one vertex however so is not stabilized by contact with the earth, only by its own rigidity. I could see this character forming from the shape, rolling up onto its point in order to gain height and superiority at the cost of some stability.
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