Steampunk tarot (Moore) - I Magician

shadowdancer

This guy is definitely someone who reminds me of the old time musical hall illusionists/magicians.
He has the stare to freeze mercury, and the moustache and goatee that has been manicured into shape, without a hair out of place. (He is folically challenged with regards head hair shall we say).

He has a coat over his right arm, so we can only guess as to what he is either hiding or is about to produce, with the effect of no doubt astounding us.
In his right hand he is holding the chalice. His left hand holds a downturned sword. the Pentacle is on the floor, and we see he is standing within the circle. The final suit (wand) is represented by a short wand on the floor infront of him.

Either side of him and slightly behind, we see two lit candles on tall holders. Both flames are erect and pretty much unflickering. Above his head is the symbol we most certainly associate with him - the lemniscate.

Missing are the items we associate with the stage magician. There is no table, no cups to play 'find the lady', in fact - all we have are the Magician and the suit symbols. So what can he do with such limited props? Well, I get the feeling quite a lot actually :D He is confident in his abilities, and is almost challenging us to prove him wrong.

One of the best stage acts I know is a guy called Derren Brown. He uses an incredible armoury of skills and approaches without actually resorting to stooges, fake camera angles etc. This Magician reminds me of him a little in that respect.

He has got where he is through hours of fine tuning. We did not see the times it all went pear shaped. Those days are behind him. And I sense by positioning himself inside the circle, he has definitely found a way of harnessing universal energy to create and manifest. Therefore, he doesn't need a shedload of props. Most of which are just for show anyway.