Buddhist Catholic Contemplative Evangelical General Christian Hindu Jewish Latter-day Saint Muslim New Visions Progressive Christian

Beliefs

Topics

Columnists

Resource Library

Research Tools

Video

Podcasts

Thought Readers

Faith In Media Tracker

Newsletters

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Follow Patheos

By Athame and Stang

Home
About

Home
Pagan
The Traditional Witches’ Deck

The Traditional Witches’ Deck

Last updated on: March 15, 2018 at 10:53 pm by Kelden

The Traditional Witches’ Deck 2018-03-15T22:53:31-05:00 Kelden

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Last Spring, I was approached by my good friend Maggie of WitchandMoon and asked if I’d like to collaborate with her on an oracle deck. The proposed theme of this deck would be Traditional Witchcraft, with each card depicting a different concept taken from history and folklore. Being both a long time fan of Maggie’s artwork and incredibly intrigued by the idea of a Trad Craft oracle deck, I eagerly came aboard as the writer for this project. And now, almost a year later, we are close to a third of the way done designing The Traditional Witches’ Deck.

As the writer behind this oracle deck, my job has been to create the story behind each card. However, this process involves so much more than just simply coming up with explanations. From the start of this project, it’s been my goal for the book that accompanies these cards to be more than a collection of mere interpretations. Each card in this deck represents an important piece of Witch-lore and history, and thus I wanted the book to also be a source of interesting facts and stories.

To achieve this I begin by taking the concept for a card and exploring its place within history and folklore. I hunt for specific events or stories that capture the essence of whatever that particular card is depicting. I then begin to weave meaning out of the strands of information I’ve gathered. Once I have the basic framework for a card I utilize my own intuition as well as messages from the Spirits to flesh out possible interpretations.

The finished product is a combination of historical/folkloric information, card interpretation, and practical advice. Although, another goal of mine has been for this deck to be fluid in it’s interpretations, providing possible outcomes but leaving it open enough for users to make their own inferences. In a sense, these cards are about tapping into the living narrative of Witchcraft in order to gain inspiration and insight.

The Four Familiar Cards (Artwork by WitchandMoon)

The following is a brief Q&A with Maggie regarding the artistic components of creating the Traditional Witches’ Deck.

Overall, what has your experience been like in creating the artwork for this oracle deck?

My experience creating the art for this deck has definitely been a challenging one. Each card I create has had its own personality and has presented itself in its own individual way. The illustration process has been very much like tuning in to an old radio station. At first there’s a little bit of static, but then the image comes through very clearly. By the time the illustration is ready to be rendered I already have a very clear picture of how the painting will come together in its final form.

Can you say more about the specific artistic mediums you utilize in producing each card?

Each card is painted with black ink and watercolors. I use a wet on wet technique to achieve the smokey black background for each card. This way I’m able to establish a uniformed look for the deck without the monotony of a set background. The decision to stick to rich earth tones for the color was easy because of the nature of the tools and practices that are found in Traditional Witchcraft.

Are there any particular inspirations which influence your artwork?

I’m very inspired by the art of Kjersti Faret of CatCoven and by Adrienne Rozzi of Poison Apple Printshop. Simplistic but intentional line work has become my absolute favorite to create. The natural rawness of Traditional Witchcraft is also a big inspiration. Whenever I’m working on creating cards for the deck I become transported to dark pine groves and thick southern forests where I grew up. The spirit of these places helps to focus my mind and give me direction when I’m in the creative process.

What are your hopes for the Traditional Witches’ Deck?

I really hope that the Traditional Witches’ Deck can be an additional tool that Witches can add to their magical arsenal. The importance of each card standing alone and having its own history has been a big goal for the both of us. While the deck can be used as an oracle deck we also want the user to have the option of implementing the cards into their own spellwork for whatever needs that may be necessary. This way, if the Witch or Magician is lacking a certain tool or ingredient, they can simply put the deck to work for them.

Artwork by WitchandMoon

For more information about The Traditional Witches’ Deck click here.

Uncategorized

Paganism

Traditional Witchcraft

Wicca

Witchcraft

Previous Post

February 3, 2018

Beginning Traditional Witchcraft

Next Post

March 22, 2018 Paganicon 2018

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Uncategorized

Select a Month April 2020 February 2020 January 2020 December 2019 October 2019 September 2019 August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 May 2019 April 2019 February 2019 January 2019 December 2018 November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 August 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

What does 2 Peter say scoffers will say in the last days?

Select your answer to see how you score.

There is no God Where is this 'coming' he promised? The world will never end Jesus will never return