The writings of William Shakespeare and the images of A.E. Waite and Pamela Coleman Smith's Tarot offer two of the most evocative, enduring, and intuitive symbol systems in European history. Rich in metaphor and dense with meaning, each body of work presents its own pathways towards a deeper understanding of ourselves, each other, and what it means to be human in this world. Taken together, the light (and shadow) they cast on each other can spark whole new blazes of insight. The venerable 78-card deck illuminates themes, characters, and moments from the Shakespearean canon. By the same stroke, the Bard's language and storytelling provide the pictures with substance and grounding, giving the Tarot's abstract archetypes "a local habitation and a name."
Bard's Arcana: The Tarot of Shakespeare is grounded in the structure of the Waite-Smith Tarot deck: a 22-card Major Arcana and a 56-card Minor Arcana divided into the 14-card suits of Wands, Cups, Swords, and Pentacles. Inspired by the iconography and composition of Pamela Coleman Smith's original art, each Tarot image has been lovingly paired with a character or scene from the Shakespearean canon that illustrates, illuminates, or complicates the themes and meaning of that particular card. Every image evokes surprise, whether it invites delight or deliberation. Who better to represent the Empress than Shakespeare's own patron, Queen Elizabeth the First? But what becomes of the trusted Hierophant when embodied by Measure for Measure's hypocritical Angelo?
The Major Arcana features many of the Bard's most famous figures, from Romeo + Juliet (The Lovers) to Hamlet (Death), while also shining the spotlight on hidden gems like King John's Constance (Strength) and the Sonnets' Dark Lady (The Moon) who will send you scurrying back to your Complete Works.
In the Minor Arcana, you'll find Wands wielded by willful strivers from Puck to Palamon, Cups brimming with passionate romantics like Miranda and Orlando, Swords swung by schemers such as Edmund and Lady Macbeth, and Pentacles stuffed with earthy appetites from Falstaff to Olivia. The Royalty are--of course--filled out with canonical Knights, Kings, and Queens, while the Pages feature the Comedies' generous selection of gender swaps.
This project is still work in progress and up on Kickstarter in hopes of raising funds to cover print and distribution cost.
Selected details including quotes on each card are finished with gold foiling
