Interview with Lee Bursten about the Gay Tarot

Thread originally posted on the Aeclectic Tarot Forum on 14 Jun 2004, and now archived in the Forum Library.

Kiama	14 Jun 2004
Hi all! I've just finished an interview with Lee about his experiences and views as a Tarot reader, and the Gay Tarot itself (forthcoming deck from Lo Scarabeo.) You can read the interview by going here: www.cardiffpagan.co.uk And clicking on 'Magazine' on the left, then 'Issue 3', and then in the contents clicking on 'Lee Bursten' in the Interviews section. Enjoy! Kiama

Astraea	14 Jun 2004
That is a great interview! I so enjoyed reading Lee's answers to your well thought-out questions, and learning more about his views and forthcoming deck (which I have preordered from Tarot Garden). That is a very nice website, too, Kiama. Thank you for posting the link.

Cocobird55	14 Jun 2004
Good job, Kiama and Lee. I think both the questions and the answers were thought-provoking and interesting. Sue

le pendu	14 Jun 2004
I really enjoyed reading the interview! Kiama, I found your questions really interesting. Great job! I think your questions really opened things up and kept them moving. Lee, thanks for the deck, I can't wait to get a copy, I have it preorderd with Tarot Garden. I loved what you said about people insisting on finding "their own" interpretation for the cards to the point of disqualifying those who don't. Great point. best, robert

Xarokys	15 Jun 2004
Great interview, Kiama! Very good questions and very interesting answers. I'm looking forward to the publication of this deck. I don't know how it will read for me, a heterosexual woman, but from the scans, I think I'll enjoy just looking at it. :D

Cerulean	15 Jun 2004
of sparkle and pizzaz in the deck--does it reflect Lee's theatre background as well? I like the positive slant in the questions looking at the author's 'inner view' of tarot and the deck. Sorry I won't see Lee introducing the deck in person, but this great interview is warmly welcomed. Thanks, Kiama and Lee! Cerulean Mari

Flavio	15 Jun 2004
Thank you very much for the link, great interview... count me in as one more looking forward for this deck :) Congratulations to Lee and Kiama!

rota	15 Jun 2004
Great interview, Kiama! Well-thought-out questions for Lee. Can't wait to see more cards from the actual deck.

baba-prague	15 Jun 2004
I like this interview very much, it comes across as intelligent and thoughtful. Well done! The Gay Tarot is one I certainly want. Okay, maybe I won't read with it all that much, but I do think it's going to be an interesting and likeable deck - even for people outside the gay male community. I'm looking forward to it.

Alissa	15 Jun 2004
Great interview and responses, I enjoyed reading it immensely. My congratulations to you both~!

Oni	22 Jun 2004
with june being gay pride month it renewed my intrest in this deck. thanks for posting the interview otherwise i would of not nown much of this deck, other than a few blimps i saw of it on tarotpassages. I like the fact that Lee Bursten decieded to do a deck for gay men, many of my freinds r gay men and they can not wait for this, this holiday season i will be broke buying copys of this! he hee! I think it is a good thing he also included various ethinc groups i love that . Many of my gay male freinds date outside thier ethinc group/faith or race, as i do also being a lesbian woman of mixed race. One thing i will have to say i dont agree with though is him saying that there r several decks out there for lesbians! Um i am sorry i have yet to see any! There r alot of femmist decks out there but i have never seen any decks that appeal to a lesbian. That is one thing that does bother me, being a lesbian there r not any decks that show my lifestyle. the decks i have had people at stores suggest to me (Motherpeace tarot, Daughters of the Moon, various goddess type decks) really dont speak much to lesbians myself or others i have known. Many deck creaters assume that femmism and women loveing women is the same thing, it is not, i am totally femme to the extreme and i m totally not a femmist or n2 anykind of female enpowerment type stuff i see in decks geared toward women. But i am also a witch, into baltic/slavic culture,egyptology and preislamic middle eastern faiths, psychology, paranormal, erotic , horror, ancient mysteries, magick etc, so i do find more decks out there than i can possably obtain. It is a good thing that Lee Bursten is doing and i hope more gay, lesbian, bisexual, any non mainstrem sexuality (ie- people into s/m, bondage, role playing etc) follow suit and come up with decks also. Hmm gives me a good idea, a deck with people of all sexualities dressed up in costumes of famus people throught histroy, like someone could be dressed like Stalin or Hitler for the devil card, maybe a woman dressed as Napolen for the Emper card etc. Joy Joy

Centaur	22 Jun 2004
Yep, that was a very enjoyable read. I am keen to get my hands on this deck. I think the Gay Tarot fills a niche which has not previously been catered for in such an attractive, and lovely way. I like! :) And I want! Hehehe.

Lee	22 Jun 2004
Quote: Originally posted by Oni There r alot of femmist decks out there but i have never seen any decks that appeal to a lesbian. That is one thing that does bother me, being a lesbian there r not any decks that show my lifestyle. the decks i have had people at stores suggest to me (Motherpeace tarot, Daughters of the Moon, various goddess type decks) really dont speak much to lesbians myself or others i have known. Many deck creaters assume that femmism and women loveing women is the same thing, it is not, i am totally femme to the extreme and i m totally not a femmist or n2 anykind of female enpowerment type stuff i see in decks geared toward women. Hi, Joy -- I think you make a very good point regarding lesbian decks. The decks I was thinking of were, for example, Daughters of the Moon, which has almost no male presence in it and which, I believe (I don't have the deck, although I must say the scans I've seen look beautiful), has two versions of the Lovers card, one straight and one lesbian. Also there was a deck called the Amazon Tarot, which Rachel Pollack discusses in her book "The New Tarot" and which I think is mentioned in Mary Greer's "Tarot for Your Self," which seems to be very clearly a lesbian deck. This deck is long out of print and is probably very difficult to find. You can see scans from it here: http://www.themysticeye.com/pics/amazon.htm But I wouldn't presume to know what would qualify as a lesbian deck, and that's the main reason I didn't want to include lesbians in the Gay Tarot. I hope that true lesbian decks are created, and I hope they'll be published. Maybe you can create one! Another feminist deck which some might consider as having a lesbian viewpoint is the Wise Woman's Tarot, whose Lovers card shows three women: http://www.flashsilvermoon.com/ -- Lee

Moonbow*	22 Jun 2004
I really enjoyed reading this interview :) Good questions Kiama and informative, thorough answers too Lee Well done you!

The Interview with Lee Bursten about the Gay Tarot thread was originally posted on 14 Jun 2004 in the Tarot Decks board, and is now archived in the Forum Library. Read the active threads in Tarot Decks, or read more archived threads.