When I was growing up, my mum was an avid Tarot reader. I used to watch her practice, and sometimes could hear her reading the cards to visitors. It was always a spine tingling experience! I used to love the artwork on her cards (never alowed to touch, obviously!), but there was just something about it that enticed me into this world of magick & energy. She also used to buy and sell rare books, and some of the volumes that she had were truly magnificent. Stunning illustrations, woodcuts and engravings were to be found within the leather bindings and I remember sneaking a look at them when my parents were out of the house!
One of my favourite volumes was called Dictionnaire Infernal. A French collection of demons, occult & mythical beings and events. The pictures in there were tiny - only about 4cm square, but they were just so detailed! You might have seen some of the images of demons and monsters & things-that-go-bump in-the-night doing the rounds on the internet. They're truly remarkable images.
A couple of images in the book stuck with me for years. One was a sea full of people with angels bearing down on them with horns, the other was a man in flamboyant costume merrily skipping along whilst being chased by a dog. It seemed very clear that they were images from the Tarot - Judgement & The Fool.
I promptly forgot all about it, and forgot all about the book for many years until it came up in conversation a few months ago. I was explaining to a friend that I beleved that a full deck of Tarot images were secretly hidden within the book. I tested the theory by taking a few of the tiny images, repairing any damage, cleaning them up and then colourising them to make the detail pop.
As a bit of fun, I mocked up a couple of cards & showed them to some friends, explaining the story of where the images came from. They immediately asked me if I intended to publish the completed deck, as they would love a copy....
And that's what brings me here. I'd love to share my work so far, get your feedback & maybe even get your suggestions. It would mean a massive amount to me, and if it helps get this secret Tarot deck out into the public, then that's a worthwhile thing to do
Sorry for rambling on! I'll post my updates & designs in this thread, please feel free to share links to the project with anyone you may think might be interested
My facebook page is here, if you want to view & share socially! Thank you!
http://www.facebook.com/infernaltarot
Picky is good! I like picky!
