The Alice Tarot

[baba-prague]

Originally Posted by Libra8ca

I love the Strength card! Very unique and clever. I like the expression on the lion's face! I'm an animal lover and lions are just about my favourite animal so this is saying a lot.

Thanks. We are particularly fond of all members of the cat family too, though I have developed a soft spot for the Unicorn.

[Celice]

Originally Posted by baba-prague

Ah, he's a whole fish not a fish head - he has a tail.

We based this on a real fish and it was in fact pink. We considered brown or green but it got a bit lost in the background so we stuck to the natural colour. The colour might get changed later, but it will depend a lot on other aspects of the deck. I actually quite like him pink but we tend to review all colours when we get a bit further on in the deck so you never know

I like him pink, I think he looks like a real fish that way. Gold or silver might look less realistic?

I'm so glad the unicorn will be making another appearance in the deck, I love him, especially the cute goatee! I'm also eagerly hoping and waiting to see my favorite characters, the Mock Turtle and the Gryphon. I love this deck!

[magpie9]

Originally Posted by Celice

I like him pink, I think he looks like a real fish that way. Gold or silver might look less realistic?
!

I guess I'm fish-challenged---I've never seen a pink fish. I've seen plenty of goldfish and silver minnows, but nothing pink on the outside. I'll keep an eye out for them now that I know they exist.
I must say he has very good legs for a fish!

[Celice]

Originally Posted by magpie9

I guess I'm fish-challenged---I've never seen a pink fish. I've seen plenty of goldfish and silver minnows, but nothing pink on the outside. I'll keep an eye out for them now that I know they exist.
I must say he has very good legs for a fish!

Well I guess there are fish of all colors, even hot pink and purple. Yeah he does have nice legs. I'm glad he has that tail poking out, that's my favorite part of the card. He wouldn't be complete if he just had a fish head.

[baba-prague]

Originally Posted by Celice

I like him pink, I think he looks like a real fish that way. Gold or silver might look less realistic?

I'm so glad the unicorn will be making another appearance in the deck, I love him, especially the cute goatee! I'm also eagerly hoping and waiting to see my favorite characters, the Mock Turtle and the Gryphon. I love this deck!

The Mock Turtle is our Hermit. The Gryphon is the Emperor - for whom he's perfect.

And no, I have NO idea how we will do these two characters. We're working up to them with a bit of trepidation.

[alice_addams]

Originally Posted by baba-prague

Well, the Wonderland is really from a pre-digital era so to be fair it's like comparing chalk and cheese. Our illustrations are much more sophisticated technically, but that's in part because we have the wonders (cough) of computers and digital photography now.

True...I do love the art of the Wonderland, and this deck won't replace it, but it will be a lovely addition. I should have been clearer in my original post: it's not necessarily the art that I feel is superior (as you said, it's an apples to oranges comparison) but somehow I feel the Alice Tarot will be a better reading deck for me. Wonderland is so fun to look at, but when I try to read with it I'm usually left scratching my head..or just giggling. Of course I won't know til I actually have this deck, but from the scans I've seen I do think it'll speak a bit more clearly.

Have you considered what scene you will use for the Fool? I thought the Mad Hatter was a funny choice, in a literal "foolish" sense, but I sort of expected to see Alice there, as it is *her* journey, after all. I'm most looking forward to seeing your take on this particular card!

[baba-prague]

Originally Posted by alice_addams

True...I do love the art of the Wonderland, and this deck won't replace it, but it will be a lovely addition. I should have been clearer in my original post: it's not necessarily the art that I feel is superior (as you said, it's an apples to oranges comparison) but somehow I feel the Alice Tarot will be a better reading deck for me. Wonderland is so fun to look at, but when I try to read with it I'm usually left scratching my head..or just giggling. Of course I won't know til I actually have this deck, but from the scans I've seen I do think it'll speak a bit more clearly.

Have you considered what scene you will use for the Fool? I thought the Mad Hatter was a funny choice, in a literal "foolish" sense, but I sort of expected to see Alice there, as it is *her* journey, after all. I'm most looking forward to seeing your take on this particular card!

Oh no worries at all. I suppose we're bound to get comparisons with the Wonderland but the two decks seem utterly different to me. I think ours will be easier to get into just because it's very narrative - but I'm sure some will continue to prefer the Wonderland, and it's certainly had a good following and made its mark over the years.

We are using the moment that Alice chases the White Rabbit - just before he dives down the hole - for The Fool. I agree with you that it's Alice's journey and I also think it fits with the very sudden beginning of the book - Alice sees the White Rabbit and just instantly goes running after him, without stopping to consider the consequences.

I hope you'll like the Fool card - I'm actually very pleased with the way it's worked out, but the Rabbit isn't yet finished (the rest of the card is) so I'm not yet showing it. Soon though I hope.

[irian]

Originally Posted by baba-prague

She's wonderful. She is one of the main reasons I wanted to do this deck - she's just at the right age now but in a year or two she'll be a young woman and the moment would have passed. She is being quite patient about the whole thing, though we keep the photo sessions fairly short.

I will have to second essjay's comment about your model for Alice. Is she related to either you or Alex, by any chance? Or maybe one of your neighbors? Either way, she's lucky to be immortalized in a MRP deck. It'll be something she can tell her future kids and grandkids about.

Originally Posted by baba-prague

I was very nervous about the Cheshire Cat because I've seen that character let down so many versions of Alice (I'm afraid I cannot stand the way Tim Burton has done him - shudder). So I'm glad to have him done early - he was actually the hardest card in many ways.

I will have to agree to disagree with you, as I myself happen to love Tim Burton's Cheshire Cat. He reminds me of Makoto Muramatsu's cat illustrations, only more cute and fluffy in an evil way rather than cute and fluffy in a candy-sweet way (like in Muramatsu's illustrations). Your Cheshire Cat definitely looks more enigmatic than the Burton version though.

Going off topic here, but some of Muramatsu's illustrations also remind me of the Bohemian Kitties, but without the Baroque finery:

http://designwar.net/page.php?id=133

Originally Posted by baba-prague

Oh no worries at all. I suppose we're bound to get comparisons with the Wonderland but the two decks seem utterly different to me. I think ours will be easier to get into just because it's very narrative - but I'm sure some will continue to prefer the Wonderland, and it's certainly had a good following and made its mark over the years.

I own a Japanese distributed edition of the US Games Wonderland tarot, and frankly, though it closely follows the RWS system, making it suitable as a learning deck, I never could get into it very much. Perhaps because of the bland color palette? Your deck is much more colorful, and the balance of the colors ensures that the focal points of the images will get the reader's attention. But I do agree with your comment that it's like comparing apples to oranges though.

[Golden Moon]

Now, I've read on your website that there are going to be Two formats - a deck with booklet or a kit with full companion book? Is one a kit or sold apart?

[baba-prague]

Originally Posted by Golden Moon

Now, I've read on your website that there are going to be Two formats - a deck with booklet or a kit with full companion book? Is one a kit or sold apart?

Yes there will be two formats - a deck with a booklet and a kit which includes deck and companion book.

We normally run a few extra books but these will not be sold through shops etc as they tend to like to have books packaged in a kit. When you think about it, it's pretty logical as physical shops find it hard to know how to display separate companion books - we've been told that the books are the wrong size to display next to decks and if they are put on shelves elsewhere people don't find them or associate them with the decks. Because of this book shops are not keen on separate companion books, so we don't distribute them.

We will have some companion books available direct from us only. However, often it works out cheaper to buy the kit.