Please find the text for our newest exhibition below.
2nd floor of the
Alfred R. Goldstein LibraryRingling College of Art + Design
Tarot Visions showcases the art of tarot decks created by womxn artists using photography, collage, painting, and illustration. Fascinating and influential tarot decks from the past one hundred years are on display, with an emphasis on recent decks by living artists.
Newly released reference sources on tarot art published by Taschen, Abrams, Quarto, and Frances Lincoln allow readers the opportunity to discern the contributions of womxn artists upon the imagery of tarot.* While the history of tarot dates back to 1441 or possibly as early as 1420, the internationally popular
Rider-Waite-Smith Tarot deck (originally published in 1909) with illustrations by Pamela Colman Smith has influenced generations of tarot artists, including many in this exhibition.**
The assembly of decks included here is not exhaustive but one entrée into an illuminating, and ongoing story about womxn artists in the world of tarot. Discover symbolically intriguing decks intended for divination or self-discovery, diverse visual interpretations of the archetypes and emblems on the major and minor arcana cards, and the creators behind the decks in their own words.
Tarot Visions gathers work by:
Pamela Colman Smith (1878–1951)
Tillie Walden
Alejandra Luisa Léon
Maja D’Aoust Witch of the Dawn
Mary Evans
Ithell Colquhoun (1906–1988)
Bea Nettles
The Story Medicine
Safara Wanjagi
Olivia M. Healy
The Brizdle-Schoenberg Special Collections Center recently began collecting tarot decks to increase equity in our history of illustration collection. We seek out areas of graphic arts where womxn artists have historically been present (even if not properly credited or recognized), are currently flourishing, and altering our expectations.
Check out our weekly artist features on Facebook and Instagram throughout the exhibition!
* See e.g. Jessica Hundley, Tarot (Taschen: Köln, 2020); Laetitia Barbier, Tarot and Divination Cards: A Visual Archive (New York: Abrams, 2021); Holly Adams Easley and Esther Joy Archer, The History of Tarot Art: Demystifying the Art and Arcana, Deck by Deck (Bellevue, WA: Quarto, 2021); and Sarah Bartlett, Iconic Tarot Decks: The History, Symbolism and Design of over 50 Decks (London: Frances Lincoln, 2021).**Although not included here, other influential 20th century decks by womxn artists include the Thoth Tarot which is based on a system designed by Aleister Crowley with artwork by Frieda Harris (first published in 1944) and Motherpeace which is a mini round tarot deck published by Karen Vogel and Vicki Nobel in 1981.
