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The 2023 deck is Luminous Creatures Oracle and it is now on KickStarter (and funded!)
I have felt a deep connection to animals since I was young. I feel particularly connected to peacocks, cougars and foxes. I often find a way to incorporate them in my artwork, designs and even my websites! So when I was brainstorming my next deck I wanted to be able to make animals front and center. I was mindful though that this should not be a "spirit animal" deck, for fear of there being any perception that there was cultural appropriation.
Animals have been an important part of civilizations since the beginning of written histories. While some belief systems gave animals supernatural thoughts and powers, were the embodiments of gods, or inspiration for transformation.
We only need to look to stories from Ancient Greece where gods like Zeus would disguise themselves as an animal in order to get closer to a romantic partner. In Egypt, gods had distinguishing characteristics of animals, and those animals were seen as an extension of the divine. The goddess Bast took the form of a cat, Sekmeht as a lioness, Anubis as a jackal and Sobek as a crocodile. In Viking communities warriors known as berserkers would often wear the skins of wolves or bears, with the belief that this would grant them the strength and ferocity of these animals. Even in the Bible we see the Devil as a serpent in the Garden of Eden, whispering in their ears for his own enjoyment.
It isn't just in mythology that we see the importance of animals. They are also a vehicle for a transformative process. We find them in stories like The Frog Prince, The Swan Princess, and Beauty and the Beast. In the Middle Ages animals were adopted for heralds and coat of arms. These animals could denote ancestry, power, qualities and more... Anne Boleyn had a personal symbol of a falcon - the ultimate declaration of ambition and status.
I wanted this deck to reflect the importance of these animals, while at the same time also remaining accessible to the largest number of people. Most animal decks out there tend towards more realistic interpretations, but the Luminous Creatures deck puts a fun spin on these creatures with that adorable big eye, baby animal vibe.
So I broke out the iPad, Procreate...and also Midjourney. Now I know that there is a lot of debate about AI, and I also know that a lot of people think that it is a matter of just typing in "cute little bear" and it spits out this amazing artwork. Unfortunately, that isn't quite how it works yet, and more often then not you get some insane images. So each card is the result of about 100 different attempts, with parts put together in Procreate and then refined by actually drawing and making it cohesive. In one try I might get a nose I really like, another a fur color, etc.. I mean check out this nightmare fuel:
Animals have been an important part of civilizations since the beginning of written histories. While some belief systems gave animals supernatural thoughts and powers, were the embodiments of gods, or inspiration for transformation.
We only need to look to stories from Ancient Greece where gods like Zeus would disguise themselves as an animal in order to get closer to a romantic partner. In Egypt, gods had distinguishing characteristics of animals, and those animals were seen as an extension of the divine. The goddess Bast took the form of a cat, Sekmeht as a lioness, Anubis as a jackal and Sobek as a crocodile. In Viking communities warriors known as berserkers would often wear the skins of wolves or bears, with the belief that this would grant them the strength and ferocity of these animals. Even in the Bible we see the Devil as a serpent in the Garden of Eden, whispering in their ears for his own enjoyment.
It isn't just in mythology that we see the importance of animals. They are also a vehicle for a transformative process. We find them in stories like The Frog Prince, The Swan Princess, and Beauty and the Beast. In the Middle Ages animals were adopted for heralds and coat of arms. These animals could denote ancestry, power, qualities and more... Anne Boleyn had a personal symbol of a falcon - the ultimate declaration of ambition and status.
I wanted this deck to reflect the importance of these animals, while at the same time also remaining accessible to the largest number of people. Most animal decks out there tend towards more realistic interpretations, but the Luminous Creatures deck puts a fun spin on these creatures with that adorable big eye, baby animal vibe.
So I broke out the iPad, Procreate...and also Midjourney. Now I know that there is a lot of debate about AI, and I also know that a lot of people think that it is a matter of just typing in "cute little bear" and it spits out this amazing artwork. Unfortunately, that isn't quite how it works yet, and more often then not you get some insane images. So each card is the result of about 100 different attempts, with parts put together in Procreate and then refined by actually drawing and making it cohesive. In one try I might get a nose I really like, another a fur color, etc.. I mean check out this nightmare fuel:
So long story short - each card image is about 40% Midjourney and 60% creating a Frankenstein base that gets fixed, drawn, etc in Procreate.
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