Altering card art?

Silverfool

Hey guys,

I've been trying to find a deck that is inclusive (racially, sexually, etc.) that is breathtakingly beautiful- but it's been hard to find. All the decks I would buy are still in production. (The Fairytale Tarot and tumblr user Trungles' tarot deck that has been in the making for a few years now.)

I have a friend who just got into tarot and I really wanted to get her a beautiful deck, but I don't want to get her a beautiful-yet-whitewashed deck. I want her to feel included.

So I was thinking, what if I altered the art on something like Shadowscapes? People alter card art for Magic:The Gathering cards all the time- it's a business in all honesty! But MTG cards tend to get placed into "card sleeves," so if you used something like acrylic paint the card wouldn't be so obviously textured, and things like that.

I want to make some of the fairies in Shadowscapes black by coloring over their skin with Copic markers! And maybe even attempting to make the guy in the Lovers card look more feminine- although he does appear to be quite androgynous already!

I was curious to know if anyone here has done something similar to their decks? Any advice?
 

Laura Borealis

I haven't myself but yes, people do add to deck art sometimes. I saw a video recently where someone added some color to the Linestrider tarot (the fox card was the example I saw). I don't remember where, but recently I saw where someone added pupils to some of the eyes in a tarot deck... I don't remember which deck either, but some/all of the eyes were blank so they made them look more natural.

There are some threads around here about altering decks, though if I remember right, most of them are about trimming borders, gilding the edges, adding metallic accents or glitter, etc.

I found this thread in the index though... it might be of interest: http://www.tarotforum.net/showthread.php?t=66689
 

Debra

I don't remember where, but recently I saw where someone added pupils to some of the eyes in a tarot deck... I don't remember which deck either, but some/all of the eyes were blank so they made them look more natural.

Sacred Rose tarot, I bet.
I've added and covered parts of images with marker pens. Wipe the card carefully first, and let the ink or paint dry thoroughly.
 

Alta

A member here added touches of colour to the Ironwing, it is spectacular.
 

Silverfool

Thanks for the help you guys! I guess I will try it out and let everyone know how it goes haha. :)
 

knight_sephiroth

It's so challenging to find decks that aren't whitewashed, or decks with "strong females" that aren't sexualized and thin-washed. Or, decks that aren't flat-out racist-but-trying-to-be-inclusive (ugh, the Native American cheeseball Tarot and the sexified Maori Tarot).

I've used Copics on decks in the past to create variation, but you can only do it with some card finishes.
 

rwcarter

I pimped my Rider Waite deck. I believe it was shadowdancer who gave some of the blondes in the Robin Wood deck black hair with a Sharpie.

Whatever changes you make, test them out on playing cards first and then rub against a sheet of white paper to see if you get any transfer. If you do, then you'll need to spray a light coat of varnish over the cards to seal in the changes you make.

Rodney
 

PenPendragon

Hey guys,

I've been trying to find a deck that is inclusive (racially, sexually, etc.) that is breathtakingly beautiful- but it's been hard to find. All the decks I would buy are still in production. (The Fairytale Tarot and tumblr user Trungles' tarot deck that has been in the making for a few years now.)

I have a friend who just got into tarot and I really wanted to get her a beautiful deck, but I don't want to get her a beautiful-yet-whitewashed deck. I want her to feel included.

So I was thinking, what if I altered the art on something like Shadowscapes? People alter card art for Magic:The Gathering cards all the time- it's a business in all honesty! But MTG cards tend to get placed into "card sleeves," so if you used something like acrylic paint the card wouldn't be so obviously textured, and things like that.

I want to make some of the fairies in Shadowscapes black by coloring over their skin with Copic markers! And maybe even attempting to make the guy in the Lovers card look more feminine- although he does appear to be quite androgynous already!

I was curious to know if anyone here has done something similar to their decks? Any advice?
____________________

I have hand 'painted' decks of B/W cards that are printed on laminated/ shiny stock. I found that *permanent* professional art markers (like Design, Pantone, etc) will cover slick card surfaces and that one can produce light struck and shadow areas by certain techniques. First acquire permanent markers in preferred colours, a marker called a 'colourless blender' and a few Qtips. This type of pigment is transparent. If you want to turn some of the figures into a range of skin tones, choose markers in earth tones, like umber, burnt umber, sepia, ocher, dark peach, terra cotta (red-browns/ in the brick family), depending on the depth of the skin tone you want and the richness of rose tones in it.
Do no use black! Would look like streaky shoe polish.
Lightly, using long strokes of the marker 'brush' over the existing figure. Then use the colourless blender's fine point or swipe the 'juice' onto a Qtip, to lift a bit of the colour you just applied...where the light (from above) would strike the figure...top of shoulders, forehead, thigh, knee, top of foot so that there is a slight variation from dark areas to light struck ones.
If you get something too dark, quickly swipe the broad edge of the colourless blender across where you applied the pigment then wipe with paper towel. You can do that several times until the colour is removed but don't saturate. Dry and start again. Work with markers in well ventilated area (some artists who painted landscapes with markers while in their cars have become vegetables).
Pen
 

Alta

Useful information Pen, thanks!