Thesis Project: Arcana Major
Art Director: Nathan William Young
Illustrated on Procreate
During quarantine two things I discovered a newfound appreciation for were tarot cards and music. Through this project I wanted to combine the two with another thing I really love: illustration.
I collaborated with good friends of mine
to construct the perfect playlist for each card of the Tarot Major Arcana cards.
Using a mix of symbolism from the traditional Rider-Waite tarot deck and symbolism in the playlist’s songs I illustrated each card based on how I interpret them into a visual media. It was super fun to imagine the cards in my own universe and make them into a reality.
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RESEARCH & PLANNING
I then collaborated with my friend Grace in
order to find songs that fit the meanings of the
cards I was representing. We would present
ideas for different songs and argue and
debate for which songs were fit and how
many songs to have per playlist.
I used many resources to properly learn about the meanings of the Major Arcana to the best of my ability as well as collaborated with more experienced tarot readers in learning about the core messages and readings of the cards.
I first started by laying out the very basics of
what I wanted to do, while looking at my goals
and evaluating what I wanted to create.
Getting basics like sizing and general goals really
helped the project grow into itself!
PROCESS
Rider-Waite Wheel of Fortune Card
The original Rider-Waite cards have a LOT of symbolism incorporated into their designs! This
is something I wanted
to make sure I didn’t
lose completely with
my redesigns.
Arcana Major Wheel of Fortune Card
In my designs, I wanted to keep some of the symbolism from the original deck while incorporating my music factor, so I found a happy medium! I connected the original constellations to the zodiac signs of the four figures in the Rider-Waite card while adding a vinyl record to connect to the music aspect of the card.
I sketched out every card in black and white before moving onto my painting process. I like to map everything out before I begin any piece so that I don’t lose the ideas I have in my mind.
This part of my process really helps me realize what I’m doing and how to approach issues I might have.
I wanted to design the back of the cards as perfectly symmetrical so that when theoretically used in a reading there would be no telling if the card was reversed or not. I also wanted to do it in black and white because I knew I wanted my illustrations to be full of color and I didn’t want any colors to clash with the frame of the cards. I tied in my continuous music staff lines and musical notes into a cosmic illustration that encapsulates everything about this project!
THE EXECUTION
All Cards in this series are interpreted through their upright meaning.
In order to connect my playlists with their card illustrations I decided to embed the Spotify QR codes directly into the frame of each card so that they can be scanned with a smartphone camera and listened to!
