Interview With Creator Of Steampunk Tarot Card Deck
In a recent interview with the illustrator of a new Steampunk themed Tarot card reading deck, inventor of the unique new Tarot Card deck Barbara Moore discusses her roots in Tarot and how the new deck came about.
As recently reported by westword.com, Barbara Moore discusses her inspiration for the deck and Tarot roots.
Westword: How did you first get into Tarot and what has your journey in that aspect of life looked like?
Barbara Moore: In college, at a party, a friend brought out a deck and I fell in love without really knowing what it was. I was working on my history degree with a focus on the Middle Ages and Renaissance, with additional interest in art, mythology, and psychology, so the tarot was a perfect blend of my degree. That was over twenty years ago.
In the beginning, I studied on my own, buying books and experimenting. The Internet wasn’t what it is now. Later, when I moved to Minnesota, I got a job with Llewellyn Publishing, a company that publishes tarot decks. Over the years, I worked with them to create a job focused specifically on their tarot line. Working on helping other projects come to life and reach bookstore shelves has been satisfying. Later, I had the opportunity to work on my own projects.
I currently do project development for Llewellyn and Lo Scarabeo, an Italian tarot publisher. In addition, I continue to write books, design decks, do readings, and teach. One of my favorite things is speaking at conferences. It combines some of my favorite things: tarot, travel, and meeting other tarot lovers.
Can you talk about the decision to come out with a Steampunk deck?
About five years ago, I bought a necklace through Etsy. It was a cool combination of Victorian and some sort of futuristic yet retro feel. It was a look that I always liked but didn’t know was an actual look, if you know what I mean. The necklace was tagged with the descriptor “Steampunk.” A few Google moments later, I understood. “So what I like has a name!”
All excited, I told a colleague (Andrew, who is mentioned in the book’s dedication) about it. As we discussed the themes of Steampunk, he said, “you should make a Steampunk tarot.”
How did you go about deciding how to draw this deck — the suits and the major arcana?
You mean, how did I decide about the art direction, right? Because I didn’t draw it. I designed it. British artist Aly Fell is the artist who worked with me.
I didn’t want this to be just a novelty deck. I wanted it to be a good reading deck, one that I would want to use professionally. Because I studied and work with decks grounded in the Rider Waite Smith tradition, that is the basis for the Steampunk Tarot.
All in all the new Steampunk Tarot Card deck appears to be very well done, and quite usable for accurate Tarot Card Readings as it is based upon the tradition of Rider Waite Smith Tarot Cards.
What do you think of this unique new Tarot Card theme? Be sure to leave a comment.
