Who likes Tarot of the Silicon Dawn?

[Reyan]

I just got Tarot of the Silicon Dawn, and I am very disappointed with it. Not only are the cards extremely cheap, but the companion book and the artwork seem goofy, irreverent, and not remotely futuristic or science-fictionesque.

The cards come in two shrink-wrapped packets; in my copy, the two packets were cut slightly differently, and the bottom right corner of one packet was cut wrong, so that this corner is less rounded than the other three. What's more, the cards are so flimsy that after simply shuffling and examining them for a bit, a few have already gotten creased - this has never happened to me with other cards. Also the images are already chipping on the edges after just one day of use.

As for the book, the first sentence is "Tarot is a big pack of lies and misinterpretations." Trauth goes on to explain her views that tarot imagery is made of icons from a long past culture (Renaissance Italy, for one), and are no longer relevant to modern culture, and thus the symbols need revision. And okay, okay, I understand this view; its probably true to some degree, and an interest in the "modern" take on tarot was part of the reason I bought this deck in the first place. But the tone of the book is I suppose what upsets me - just very sarcastic and derogatory towards "other" tarot creators and users.

Now, the marketing of the deck has been that it is modern and sci-fi. However, looking at the actual artwork, I just don't see any of this. There are a lot of naked, four-breasted serpent-women, but this is neither futuristic, nor has it the least to do with science. I would call it fantasy (which again, is no problem, except for the deck's own self-conception). The "futuristic" aspect of this deck seems to be related to strange animal-human mutants (the book constantly reiterates "clever" rhetorical questions about surgery and sexuality, like "was that machine mermaid built that way, or born a human?"), as well as sex, alcohol and drugs. While I by no means have any grudge against varied sexualities, nor do I condemn the consumption of alcohol, but I would like to point out that these things are not modern, as people have been drinking and getting high and having sex literally for millenia. I was really expecting some computers and robots and things actually made of silicon (btw, is there some sort of a robot tarot out there? that would be my cup of tea), or at least some visible technology (the only evidence of a computer I have seen is a keyboard sitting in front of the Magician. And a nice cream-colored 70's looking one at that). Actually, I'm a little bit offended that modern culture is equated to getting "****ed up." Now I'm not saying that I think all decks should be fairy-princess perfectly harmless and happy, but there's a difference between "mature" and just tasteless.

Does anybody have some redeeming things to say about this deck? Despite my ranting, I don't want to give up on it just yet, as I still think its possible that it could grow on me, if I can find the right perspective to look at it. And if maybe I can fix it up a bit

 

[gregory]

I think it is quite brilliant - and so do many others here.

And - cheap ? The extras they added to the card in the printing cost heaps, I believe. And the LWB - well, where else will you find a mother ****ing dragon ?

I don't think ANYONE suggested it was science, mind you. Did you follow the creation thread ?

 

[Alta]

I am of two minds about it. As in: I don't like having multiple Fool cards but then more than one came up in a reading and it made sense. *shrugs* I did give up on the book, I couldn't make anything from it, but, I know that others love it.

I agree with gregory, it likely wasn't cheaply produced but my set also had cutting errors so the two halves of the deck don't go together, and the card stock does seem thin. But, the cards do handle nicely, especially when you consider there are so many to shuffle. See, I told you I was of two minds about it.

I also don't get the futuristic claim, it does seem more like a fantasy deck, and to be fair, the creator actually didn't know much about tarot (as she says herself) so it is more like a riff on tarot than tarot. imo anyway.

I like it and don't like it. So, one person's rather confused reaction.

ETA: also, it seems a bit as if Egypt created an oracle deck and a tarot deck at the same time and put them together. It is odd, it is interesting, it is original and actually it reads fairly well.

 

[Reyan]

And - cheap ? The extras they added to the card in the printing cost heaps, I believe

I believe you're referring to the glossy patterns on some of the cards? Okay sure, that's cool and maybe its expensive, I don't know, but I'd much rather have nice sturdy cards with well-cut edges that don't chip than extra fancy stuff on fall-apart cards.

I don't think ANYONE suggested it was science, mind you.

How about the first sentence in the deck's description on Aeclectic? "The Tarot of the Silicon Dawn is an original and modern deck of vivid colours, science fiction imagery and kinetic shapes."

Alta, thank's for your thoughts. I suppose in the end I'm also somewhat torn about the deck. I think the reason for my extremely negative first reaction was mostly due to the high hopes and anticipation I'd had for the deck before getting it.

At gregory's suggestion, I skimmed over the creation thread; no I hadn't read it before. I'm not sure what I was intended to get out of it, but Urnash does emphasize the fact that she's not a huge tarot person to begin with, which makes sense to me, and I can see that her personality and personal life is very much in line with her artwork. I had guessed from looking at the cards that she was lesbian/bisexual and/or in a threesome, for example, and she confirmed this in the thread. So this is interesting, and knowing a bit about the artist always does put a new perspective on artwork.

I think the dramatic reorganizing of the tarot, often in a deliberately silly way, is still the most off-putting to me. But perhaps I am being closed-minded. Still - why switch the wands and pentacles? And the 99's I find very unappealing. She said herself that they started as a joke, and you can tell, they're goofy. I suppose this is intentional, so maybe it is just me, but I'm not liking how flippant it is.

 

[greycats]

Um, I found some sci-fi

Of course being an avid sci-fi reader, I would recognize it more easily. That circuit boarded hierophant is pretty much sci-fi. And what about the pupating Hanging Woman?

But it's not all sci-fi. Temperance is a different thing altogether, an intricate and artistic metaphor: fire and water (opposites) are reconciled in the figure's head! That's so cool. And Justice is another like it with the sword being the lower plane and the heart the upper; the balance is the visionary figure herself.

I do admire this deck, but I'll admit I use it without the extras so far. And I love the art no end--maybe because I'm diabetic and can't tolerate sugar

I can't say that I adore every card (though I do like most of them and many take my breath away), but each one makes me think. And despite the attention-grabbing first line of the book, I find that most of the material is well within the ground already covered by numerous preceding books. There's just more of it packed more densely in this one.

In fact, abundance is the characteristic I like most about the deck, that and the energy that pours off every card. To go back to Temperance: you don't have just a single pair of contrasting elements, the fire and water. You also have air and water, which if you're a fish or a non-swimmer, are opposites of a very different sort--life and death, in fact. And the mermaid herself is another set of reconciled opposites: fish and woman. In mythology woman and the sea are very closely identified, so we are invited to examine yet another way to interpret the card. Abundance! And Trauth will tell you most of these things in her book.

And texture:hold one of the majors tilted at the the light and see the varying textures. The Sun has hands coming from it and going to it which you only see in the contrasting textures. These features are not in all the cards, but they are present in many of them so the reader is encouraged to look a little more carefully. (And in some of the additional cards, the only way to see the scene is through the contrasting textures.)

I may be wrong, but I imagine that sort of thing costs extra.

I don't mean that the deck does not have issues--for example, abundance is one thing but over-the-top is another--nevertheless, it deserves thoughtful attention before a decision to discard it is made.

greycats

 

[Bhavana]

I tried to like this deck, gave it plenty of time and use, and even thought I liked it at one point - but I have come to the conclusion that I don't care for it either.

Like with most decks, there are some cards that I like, some I don't. In this one, the big thing everyone talks about are the extras - I found them mostly useless. Most of the people on the cards looked annoying to me, or looked like they might work in some sleazy futuristic go go bar, the kind of place where Mr Jetson might have stopped for a beer before heading home to daughter Judy and Jane his wife. The details, the suites, everything too small, I have wrinkles from squinting at those cards for 2 weeks. Yes, the printing extras with the raised glossy parts are neat, but I agree with you that it would be nicer to just have good sturdy cards, or have those same qualities on bigger better quality cards. And I agree, these cards will not hold up well to long term use, unless you treat them very very very gently, or never take them out of the box. I have been very careful not to get creases in mine, but after a week of use, I also noticed wearing away of the black around the edges.

It is unique, I will give it that - but it gave me empty readings and I found it either hard to relate to, or, as you said, somewhat tasteless at times. I also found it sort of jarring, or stressful - all that extra energy - it made me jumpy. I like my tarot a little more calm, a little less all over the place. While I got that the artist was trying to portray some futuristic image (drunken, mutant) of powerful women - most of it I just didn't understand. The book, forget it!! I made it maybe half way through, the whole time I was like WTF????

I can see why some people like it, and I do love the colors and the fancy printing - and the nice box - but the deck itself just isn't for me.

 

[Cassandra022]

i like it. Have been reading and even blogging a bit with it last couple weeks and its definitely solidified its standing as one of my top decks even in this short time. But then, as soon as I saw the online images, long before it was printed, they spoke to me quite strongly. It is a bit challenging/non-traditional though, so I can see why it could be a Your Mileage May Vary type of deck.

I can't complain about the print quality of my deck. All the cards are same size, properly printed and cut and everything, and just as sturdy and good quality as any Lo Scarabeo deck, which of the three mainstream deck publishers, LS has best cardstock IMO. I like the small size and the UV effect and it shuffles no problemo for me. If anything, I was actually quite impressed with LS's publishing with thid deck. Nice box, proper book, all the extra cards WITH that UV effect...very fancy.

No complaints about the book either - it held my attention long enough for me to read it all the way through and way amusing. But then I'm not really a big book that comes with deck reading person. With one or two exceptions, at best I'll read it once through before putting aside (what I did here) at worst I'll skim it a bit or just toss aside without a glance, depending on the deck in question. So, yeah, I didn't agree with everything in the book, necessarily, but it was interesting, amusing, gave good insight and was a good starting point for getting to know the deck, so no complaints.

As for reading, it's given me very good ones. Like I started reading with it while going a bit nutty with intense stress and sleep deprivation and mental stuff relating to grad school finals, and it told me just what I needed to hear, just what was perfectly appropriate when I did some quick draws for reassurance, and just, yeah. It has a very distinctive 'voice' lol quite blunt and to the point, but reading with it is very natural for me so...yeah. It gets thumbs up from me.

I did take out all the extra cards other than the three fools and the 99's though. The others were too out there/non-tarot for my tastes. The arrangement works for me just fine.

 

[vee]

I love Silicon Dawn and the book. I don't see it as sci-fi so much as post-modern. It makes a good companion to the PoMo Tarot, actually.

 

[Le Fanu]

I must dig mine out.

The provocation here has aroused my interest again. When I first got it, I loved it. Everything about it. I loved its tarot anarchy, loved everything that it did to be honest. I loved the way it tips everything on its head. Heck, I like the fact that it is rather flippant. I loved the size of the cards, the book, the contemporary urban feel. I really don't go for the science fiction thingy despite the word being used here on the Aeclectic Review. if it were science fiction-y, I probably wouldn't like it as much as I do. I had no idea what to expect when it came out and so was not disappointed.

I really must get it out again. Other decks came along and I sank back into old favourites but I really should go back to it...

 

[Chiska]

I really like the deck. Mine has no printing issues, the only problem was that a tiny corner of the book was folded during packaging and was creased.

I think it is cleverly done and when I use it, I use 97 cards. They all seem to make sense. It has given brilliant readings as well.