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I’m Creating A Tarot Deck From Self Portraits

Tarot cards are have been used throughout history as a mean of divination. Readers will lay the cards in a spread and use a mixture of intuition, spiritual guidance, and knowledge of the symbolism of each card to provide answers, clarity and insight for their client.

If you have ever heard the idea that all things are connected than you would understand that I decided to play with the idea that to get the answers we seek we can also look within. I decided to symbolize this process by using self portraiture.

I wanted this deck to be saturated with the self. I have striven to be the sole “creator” by only using myself as a model, to achieve this I have had to use makeup, wigs, costume and Photoshop to morph myself into different characters that represent the energy and themes of each card.

It was important to me to also use DIY props whenever possible. I’ve had to come up with creative solutions to challenges, such as representing a lion in the strength card. I do not live anywhere where I can take a photograph of a lion, and I refused to use outside stock images, in the end I bought a childrens toy and painted it to look like a stone statue, then manipulated the it to appear much larger in Photoshop.

This project is still a work in process, but ultimately I would like to see this deck used by people who wish to read tarot cards for themselves. My vision is to help people tap into their own inner wisdom and divinity.

You can follow along with my project on Instagram @wild_empress

I post daily behind the scenes about DIYs, challenges, editing, and more!!

Which card is your favourite?