This feels a bit like a Marseille, RWS, and Thoth fusion, rendered in a haunting woodcut engraving style of line art.

I think the "How to Read the Cards" section should be at the beginning, otherwise some of the advice given there (like to make your own meanings of the cards before you read the creator's interpretations) comes a bit too late, especially for a Tarot beginner. I’ve been excited about Ana Tourian’s Tarot of the Abyss for quite a while now, and followed its development from pretty early on. The illustration work here has this dark and complex fairytale aesthetic, which tells the origins story of Light. A lot of thought has gone into the Tarot of the Abyss. The way the generational aspect of the 10 of Pentacles has been depicted is beautiful, original and insightful. And, the ideas/insights that flow from the images on the 2 of Pentacles and the 2 of Swords add new dimensions to the cards.

Đánh giá

So much of the global collective has been going through either a Three of Swords moment or Ten of Swords. By the way, is it just me seeing patterns where there are none, but do those ten birds in the skies on the Traditional Ten of Swords remind you of the revised replacement Ten of Swords from the Light Seer’s Tarot? I’m in no way saying there’s any intentional connection. It’s more that both artists have pulled something from the psychic aethers relating to the Ten of Swords manifestation we’re in today. Not only can you see the master artist’s hand in these detailed illustrations, but what you’re seeing is also a witch’s handiwork. I know you can intuit the life force infused into every pen stroke. That’s why the art feels so alive, where there’s movement to the shapes and potency in the cross-hatching.

There’s something deeply prescient about Tourian adding alternate cards specifically for the Three and the Ten of Swords, especially in the times we find ourselves in at the moment. This adds another layer of significance to those particular cards vs. when the composition is such where you’re a bystander or passive observer. In matters of Strength or Justice, as with The Hanged One, you are a character in the storyline, and therefore your next decision will determine the outcome. Whereas with other cards, such as The Hermit, Wheel of Fortune, or Temperance, when the illustration is such that you’re just the observer, the energy conveyed is that of greater extenuating forces, for better and for worse. In the companion guidebook, which is very meaty, Minor Arcana card entries are given equal treatment to Major Arcana card entries, which is something that automatically earns brownie points from me. =)Tarot of the Abyss is a stunner, one that you will find yourself reaching for when you are lost, disoriented, or trapped in chaos and desperate for a visual of that Path of Light. In the instant that Spirit willed it, out of darkness came light, the source of all that is. That light gave rise to the entire universe, first as energy and then as matter,” writes Tourian in the companion guidebook (a meaty tome, by the way). “Out of the abyss came forth the light.” I'm fascinated by that as well! Not only is she wonderfully talented, but she is capable of so many diverse styles. Depending on where you live, the time it may take for your exchanged product to reach you, may vary.

By the way, I love the dominance of shadow in Key 8: Strength as the counter-weight to Key 11: Justice, which has a dominance of light. Here you see the personification that is Lady Justice, fierce but fair. You can really hear the artist’s voice in the guidebook. It almost has a memoir-like tone to it, and so the guidebook itself, although just card meanings, draws you in with its narrative style. The interpretations follow the traditional RWS meanings (plus 2 alternative perspectives for the extra cards - 3 and 10 of swords) and are well written. And RavenOfSummer, isn't it interesting that a reading that I did for you a while ago centered on looking into the Abyss - not that that's an uncommon theme, but still... The court cards connect with each other to reveal a bigger picture, a bit like the Minors in the Prisma Visions Tarot. Actually, intentional or not by the artist, many of the edges of the cards have lines that connect, and it feels very synchronistic.I know that Tourian’s of Romanian descent, but that’s not why I think this– even if I didn’t know that, I would have caught the scent of Slavic heritage in the art style. Her compositions in Abyss are reminiscent of the 19th century Symbolist art movement– art that reveled in the unverified personal gnosis– art that was surreal, dream-like, and not literal, but revelatory through signs and symbols of divine truths. Tourian’s art embodies all of that. It’s Romantic, and it’s emotional. You can’t look at this art and not feel something.