Hey Folks!

Welcome back to my tarot site!
Tonight I thought I’d take a pause from carving and tell you exactly why I’m doing this, and why I’m going about it “the hard way”. Later this week I’ll start writing about each card the meanings, symbols and how I choose that particular way to draw them. …Okay, ready…let’s do it! Alright first things first lets start with the “why”. A few years back I read a biography on Aleister Crowley (pix below right) and although he particularly had no effect on me I started thinking about magic, alchemy, and the secret societies of England during the forties and fifties. I then went out and started reading other books on magic particularly on the history of the Order of the Golden Dawn (which Crowley was a member) . As I read I found out that the Golden Dawn had it’s initiates hand make there own decks before passing onto the next Grade of the Order. And I remember looking at the deck I just bought , flipping through it and thinking about those people that couldn’t draw, drawing out and hand painting 22 (Major arcana...I'll explain a little later.) very difficult pictures of people, animals, monsters, feelings and over-all ideas, and what hell they must of gone through to get those drawn out. After flipping through my deck that I specifically remember thinking “you should do that” followed by me saying out loud “F**k that!”
After I dabbled into magic and found that my imagination and paintings ran wild, I felt like there was finally a reason to paint …like I finally had something to say to people besides the same generic B.S. or some sappy reach at my lost teen angst , here’s a chance to really get to a viewer and effect a change in his/her life. And I decided to commit myself to the alchemy and magic and spiritual purpose of art (Alex Grey’s book Mission of Art is great book about this check his site http://www.alexgrey.com/).
The whole while a little voice kept poking at the back of my head it kept saying “tarot, tarot, TAROT! What are you chicken? Can’t do it eh? What type of artist are you, can’t draw 22 little pictures?”, and by the time of last years Grendel’s show it was just plain screaming, “DO IT!”.I started studying book after book after book (too many to list…I’ll look them up and give you a basic list later.)And soon the first rough sketches started to flesh themselves out and I felt pretty good about them. But then I wasn’t sure what to do with them. (I drew them out at 8x11) Do I paint them? Do I scan them into the computer? Screens print them? Or block print? (which I knew nothing about and was dreading having to do.) I was stuck, I didn’t want to put my efforts into a dead end or some thing that I felt didn’t give it that “personal touch” that will make the deck unique… paintings were my first pick but then once there gone that’s it and what if someone wants all of them or a few people wanted the same card, it just was a little too exclusive …I cut computers out pretty early on I find them a great tool but its too easy to hide behind them and you could end up with a “cool design” that looks like a million other “cool designs” also I figured the more “hands on” they were the better they would work. Screen printing was too easy …plain and simple. That left Linoleum blocks…and so here I am…in hell (just kiddin’, I love it)
So, here are my basic rules for carving the deck :
1-It has to be as hands on as possible.
2-Nothing automated can be used to carve (no dremels!)
3-I can only print in black (no multicolored block prints)
4-I have to stand 100% behind EVERY CARD I do from concept on ( so if I think I’m copping –out or half-assing it, it doesn’t count…by the way, side note… that’s me judging me not you judging me, which leads me to my next one…)
5-Advice is weighed…not taken.
And last but not least…
6 The process is the process…the minor things can change (type of paper or type of ink roller) bitch all you want (which I do …often) but the system is the system.

Okay Kids I’m tired and still have a lot of carving to do so more stories on the process tomm eh? Oh hey Im doing t-shirts soon any cards you'd like to ware let me know soon?(my votes on the devil below)…Love you all…goodnight you (kiss to forehead)