new arcana

based on this post by camelia elias

i got inspired by something camelia elias and friends did once. they paired different triumphs (the entirety of them, twice) to arrive at new cards (different people, concepts, titles), and made a majors only deck based on that. i don't know if i want to actually make a deck like that, but i like the intellectual exercise, i'd like to try it out.

at first i thought i want to do the whole exercise twice - once in a very structured way (pairing cards intentionally, based on their sequence), and once completely randomized. but even just going through the first set is proving difficult. even if i'm not going to make the cards, they have to be... make-able. the concept/person needs to be able to be illustrated/imagined. devil + wheel cannot equal "samsara", at least not for me because i have no idea how i'd illustrate that.

so far i'm stuck enough that i'm considering scrapping the pairs that don't work and pulling new pairs from that pool. feels like a failure but also it's for fun so?

here's what i have so far, i'm only satisfied with a few and i'll indicate that in the description. most have some brainstormed suggestions, and a few are complete blanks:

• 1. wheel + world - ball, circle dance, winner, big bang, i like the solar system most.
• 2. hermit + judgment - english exit, recruiter, casting director, luthier, but perhaps i'll go with maestro/virtuoso.
• 3. justice + sun - social worker, adoption, step-mother. not sure...
• 4. chariot + moon - twilight, taxi, tour guide, safari, landing on explorer.
• 5. lovers + star - love nest, ritual/magic, hippies, naturists, i'm going to go with druids or druid.
• 6. pope + tower/house of god - master of ceremonies seems to fit.
• 7. emperor + devil - casino, brothel, tantra, celibate, renunciate, or finally: ascete.
• 8. empress + temperance - the godmother
• 9. popess + XIII - ?
• 10. magician + hanged man - inquisitor, interrogation, escape room. i'm liking escapologist.
• 11. fool + fortitude - humility, student, apprentice. not really working.
• 12. world + pope - initiation, or better yet - baptism.
• 13. wheel + devil - samsara, breaking wheel, maybe something bdsm related. might just do st. andrew's cross.
• 14. judgment + emperor - solenizant (guest of honor)!
• 15. hermit + temperance - prodigal son, apostate, atheist? not sure how i'd show that.
• 16. sun + empress - tanning, "woman clothed in sun", art, expressionism? meh.
• 17. justice + XIII - revenge, sanctioined violence, police, genocide, executioner, kat!
• 18. moon + popess - menstruation, doula, ooooh blood witch!
• 19. chariot + hanged man - traffic lights, unsporting behavior, sore loser/winner, spoilsport. not feeling it.
• 20. star + magician - voyeur!
• 21. lovers + fortitude - "if you want something done well..." but i'm not having luck beyond that.
• (0) fool + tower/house of god - rubber-necking, gawker, first responder? or maybe carnival... or clown!

all the "good"/finished ones are either sexual, religious, carnaval-related?? i mean those are potent areas for the psyche, i guess!

update: the requirements have loosened somewhat for the troublesome card combos. i remixed them and am now looking for a good image (which will of course carry all sorts of meanings) vs. a good meaning that might not be illustrated all that well...

• sun + hermit - grandpa!
• temperance + sun - picnic
• hanged mand + lovers - lover, but secret lover, guy hanging off a balcony naked or something
• popess + fool - zen

still a few head-scratchers:

• fortitude + justice - libel, restraining order, muzzle, gag?
• XIII + chariot - sigh... tractor? farming equipment? the charioteer looks really unimpressed with the skeleton skulking towards him - a haunted tunnel ride, since we're already in carnivals and faires...
• empress + fortitude - purse-dog. oh but what about... colliseum type shit? wrestling with lions for the entertainment of the ruling class? gladiator? kind of carnival precursor...

now i'm actually considering trying to make them. maybe imitate a wood-cutting process (not just the look) digitally, carve out the image with white from a black page, then give it that stencil-colored look. mostly i think that if i start drawing the cards i like and am certain of, i'll have more inspiration - or at least motivation - to finish ideating the difficult cards. it's been my experience in previous projects that:

• a) each item isn't ever equally good/satisfying, but that doesn't diminish the quality and sense of completion of the whole thing in the end, and
• b) i never work in complete stages, it's a drag. i much prefer moving in and out, all is well as long as there's a general sense of progress. by the time i'm finishing a few of the first cards, the last ones have always already been developed past the first stages, so no need to worry about them just because it didn't all click into place at the very beginning.

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