Internet Trolls And Tarot Deck Confessions

I had a post all prepared for today... dealing with Internet Trolls. You know...those who like to creep in and leave deluded, self justifying and hurtful comments on your blog or webpage...and always "anonymously" of course but I scrapped that post because I'm just not going to give this spelling challenged, ignorant minded person their fifteen minutes of fame on my blog! Anyway...on to my confession....

Hi, my name is Liz and I'm a tarot deck addict....

Now that I've got that out of the way, I want to tell everyone about the new deck I just got...The Deviant Moon Tarot  by Patrick Valenza. I'm so excited, it's a 2008 standard deck, first printing, with a hand signed cover card and wrapped in a hand drawn design that's one of a kind. I was very careful when removing the tape that held the hand drawn wrapping around the box and quickly stuck it away where it wouldn't get ruined. The cards were even more fantastic than I had seen in all of the photographs...deep, rich color and animated characters stared back at me as I thumbed through the deck.  The images are stunning and instantly, interpretations began leaping into my head as I perused his original artwork.

On his website, Patrick explains just how this deck came to be....

Inspiration

"Tarot of the Deviant Moon was created using various forms of photographic manipulation. Each card starts with a complete drawing. The work is scanned into the computer where I apply various photographic textures. Nineteenth century tombstones provide most of the clothes worn by the citizens of the Deviant Moon. I bent, twisted, and reformed my photos to become capes, boots, hats and trim. One of the best parts of creating the deck was “hunting” for specific textures as I respectfully tiptoed around the graveyards of eastern Long Island, N.Y. Background buildings were created with photographs I took from a local abandoned insane asylum. Rotted doors, windows and walls became castles, factories and cities.

My character stylization was influenced by ancient Greek art, yet I gave them a slightly abstracted twist. I chose to draw them in a flat, playing card style, rendering them with heavy light and shadows. The figures were then placed in a shallow background.


As I worked, different styles emerged, and before long the characters evolved into the moon-faced beings seen in the cards.


Symbolism for the deck comes from childhood dreams and imagination that carried itself into my adult world. I have always seen the melancholy side of life and have sought to express my visions through the characters I create. The moon has always been a psychic friend to me. As the sentinel of the night, it feeds my dreams and casts a strange glow on the way I see the colors of reality.

Nothing has had a greater influence over my art then the tarot itself. I first discovered the tarot at the age of nine. I was captivated by the unique characters I saw on each card and studied the artwork intensely. My favorites were the old 19th century and medieval decks. While my classmates where drawing what children normally do, I was busy making my own little pictures of the fool or the magician. Over the years I have made many attempts to create my own deck, but never completed more then a few cards each time. I held the ideas of my early random creations and revitalized them here in the Deviant Moon.


Physically, this deck has taken over three years to complete, although it is at least thirty years in the making. It is not only a testament to my art, but a record of my life."

I've heard others say that it is a little too dark for comfort but I think these images put forth a deeper set of meanings than most of the standard decks do. Life can be a bit dark and melancholy at times and tarot does represent life situations and experiences after all....