Shadowscapes Tarot

By Jewel

 

This is a deck I was chomping at the bit to get from watching images of it surface while it was in progress.  Published in 2010 by Llewellyn, Shadowscapes is one of the prettiest decks I have seen.  Stephanie began painting the deck in 2004, in her own words “Like the Fool, I stood on the precipice of this project, teetering on the edge of a vast unknown – … Each one [cards] bears the mark of my meditations as I wondered through a changing landscape of existence.”  The meditative work she did is reflected in the infinite details contained in the images.  A true to gift to the tarot world.

 

Stephanie Pui-Mun Law’s watercolor art is simply breathtaking.  There is a dreaminess and other worldliness to it that just draws me in and transports me to its magical landscape that flows like poetry.  Call it faerie or fantasy it is like walking in a dream.  Both Major and Minor Aracana are treated the same artistically.  There is so much there to absorb, and always new things to discover.  Her love of storytelling, be it her own or timeless stories told by others is beautifully captured and comes through in this deck of cards.

 

The deck is your traditional Llewellyn deck and card stock, measuring approximately 4.60” X 2.60”.  I am not overly fussy about card stock so I have no problem with it.  The cards have a thin metallic lilac border ¼” on three sides and ½” at the bottom where the titles of the cards are contained.  The Major Arcana are numbered with Roman Numerals and the Minor Aracana has the name of the Arabic number spelled out along with the suit.  The backs of the cards are purple with a circular design with a white aura surrounding it.  The circular design includes an outer circle that reflects creatures that populate the suits though they make me think of an elaborate Celtic version of them.  At the center of the design is a white sun.  The cards are reversible, though Stephanie did not design the deck to be read with reversals.  As a result, the book does not contain reversed meanings.  The deck follows the Rider-Waite Smith system but is by no means a “clone.”  Stephanie’s approach is one of following and being true to the Rider-Waite system yet representing various aspects of the meanings.

 

There are no changes to the naming of the Major Arcana.  Strength is in position VIII and Justice at IX.  The court cards are Page, Knight, Queen and King.  The traditional suit names and elemental correspondences are used:  Wands/Fire, Cups/Water, Swords/Air and Pentacles/Earth. The corresponding number of suit icons are present within the illustration.  I have to admit, I prefer decks where the illustrations capture the meanings of the cards without showing the actual suit icons, but in the case of Shadowscapes they are so flawlessly incorporated that they do not detract or take over the illustration, but become a natural part of the scene depicted. 

 

As a reader who loves elemental correspondences, I find this deck excellent for incorporating them in my readings.  Each suit is populated by different denizens of this dream or fantasy world. In the Wands suit you will find lots of foxes and felines.  The cards are colored in amber and orange tones reflecting the fire element.  In the cups you will find mermaids and mermen, as well as fish and host of other marine life.  The thematic color of this suit is tones of blue reflecting the element of water.  The suit of swords includes a lot of birds, especially swans and crows.  The swords thematic color is purple which I do not associate with air but the birds populating the cards do.  Finally, the Pentacles are populated with chameleons, lizards, and dragons.  The thematic color is green.

 

The 253 page companion book is written by Stephanie Pui-Mun Law and Barbara Moore, and between Barbara’s tarot knowledge and ability to concisely provide some great basics in tarot and Stephanie’s poetic description of the cards and their meanings it is an informative, useful, and substantial companion.  Barbara’s robust 15 page introduction section includes not only an introduction but information on: Tarot Basics, Making Meanings, Deck Structure (including key words associated with numbers and court cards), Traditional Meanings and The Artist’s Vision (which opens the reader to Stephanie’s changes in imagery), The Question, Position in the Spread, A Word on Reversals (which were not intended in this deck but can be used), Readings, Basic Reading Steps, and Beyond the Basics which includes information on: rituals, shuffling/cutting/dealing, scanning the reading, cleansing, and keeping a journal.  In the second section of the book, Stephanie provides a poetic description of each card and the card meaning.  The final section of the book includes the following spreads:  One-Card Spreads, Three Card Spreads, The Celtic Cross, Is Love in the Stars?, Will it Last?, Balancing Act, A Journey, Message from the Universe, and Dream Come True.

 

I have said a lot of good things about this deck, and I meant each and every one of them, but just as I admitted I was chomping at the bit to get the deck and love the way the suit icons have been incorporated, I was also disappointed when I opened it to a point where I did not use it for years.  To be honest, the only reason I actually ended up giving this deck a try was because my partner in a reading circle here on TT&M requested a reading with that deck, and later I began mentoring a TT&M member that is using this deck.

 

Why did I not want to use it you ask? Because Llewellyn did a disservice to this deck by making the illustrations look so small (despite cards being normal sized) and then adding borders to it.  The borders are not detracting, it is just simply with the card size it would have been nicer to have a little bit larger images vs. the borders, or even though I would hate to loose some of the stunning backdrops maybe cropping the images a little would have helped.  The small imagery is a big deal to me because it is the imagery that sparks my intuition and these cards are full of details.  To really see all the details – which really adds to readings –  I have to find images online and enlarge them.  The book does include large images of each card but they are in black and white which just don’t do it for me personally. This is my only complaint.  Llewellyn, if you are listening I am not the only one that feels this way, and we would be grateful if you could publish a large edition of this deck. There is a larger sized Czech version of this deck titled Tarot Skrytych Svetu, which I would love to get my hands on some day.

 

Overall I found the deck to be very deep and poetic.  It is not “fluffy.”  I really enjoy using it for personal and spiritual development readings, though it makes a good general reading deck as well.  I have no problem recommending this deck with the caveat regarding the difficulty in seeing the details in the imagery.  If you have perfect vision, or don’t mind looking up cards on the internet and enlarging them, or using a magnifying glass then you will most likely not have any complaints, just a wish that Llewellyn hears us as I do.

 

The Shadowscapes Tarot is great for Tarot enthusiasts of all levels.  The book facilitates the use of this deck by those new to Tarot thanks to Barbara’s comprehensive introduction section.  Intuitive readers or those expanding their intuitive reading abilities should give this deck a try.  Though not a Faerie deck per se, I do believe people who like faerie and fantasy themed decks will enjoy this deck.  Those interested in storytelling and writing will also like this deck.  If you are looking for a deck steeped in esoteric symbolism this is not the deck you are looking for.  I did however notice that animal and flower symbolism is present in this deck as well as elemental and color associations.  In addition, it is a good deck to use with querents that are nervous about Tarot as whole, so I would have no problem reading for Aunt Fifi with it.

I love this deck as well as it was my very first. I also hope to get the Czech version someday, or I hope Llewellyn would hear the feedback and reprint it in a larger size.

I love this deck as well as it was my very first. I also hope to get the Czech version someday, or I hope Llewellyn would hear the feedback and reprint it in a larger size.

I'm joining this *Large Borderless (Gilded edges?) Shadowscapes Tarot petition as well!:D

let's gang up on Llewellyn to hurry up & publish it already!;D

I second all the great points you mention for this wonderful decks! Thanks for this great review Jewel! :D

As queenodwans this is also my very first deck, chosen carefully to be "the one" so I have a special connection to it  <3.

 

I've never been annoyed by the smallness of the images but I understand that and I know many many readers would like a larger version. I know someone, and I'm sure there's more, who get rid of it for this reason.  :'(

For those who like apps, it could be a solution to buy the app instead of the real deck. It is available with Fool's dog.

Stephanie Pui Mun Law has also made 2 books called "The art of Shadowscapes" There is one for the major arcanas and one for the minor. There's enlarged reproductions in colors of all the card plus some addditional illustrations and preparatory sketches.

Esk[/member] great idea! luv fools dog apps!:)

Thank all of you for your comments and contributions to the review and please keep them coming!  :thumbsup:  The only reason the small images bother me is because there are SOOOOOOOOO many lovely details that can easily be missed.  So hear is to Llewellyn hearing us.

 

For those who like apps, it could be a solution to buy the app instead of the real deck. It is available with Fool's dog.

Stephanie Pui Mun Law has also made 2 books called "The art of Shadowscapes" There is one for the major arcanas and one for the minor. There's enlarged reproductions in colors of all the card plus some addditional illustrations and preparatory sketches.

Esk thank you so much for adding this!  :biggrin:  When it comes to Tarot, I just personally not an app person for decks, but I will definitely see if I can get my hands on the 2 books (I love books).

Jewel[/member], thanks so much for another great review.  :thumbsup:

Thank you for this review of one of my favorite decks.  When I first got the deck last year, I actually took out a magnifying glass and spent some time picking out some of the small details - and there are many.  So count me as another vote in favor of making a version without borders.

sandrang123[/member] thank you  ((

 

Thank you for this review of one of my favorite decks.  When I first got the deck last year, I actually took out a magnifying glass and spent some time picking out some of the small details - and there are many.  So count me as another vote in favor of making a version without borders.

I have done the same  ;D  I found that going online and finding an image (or taking a pic of the card or spreads) and enlarging it helps me see the details.  I am going to look into those books that Esk posted about in a previous post.  This is truly one of those decks that would really benefit from a larger and borderless version because so much can be missed.  I know I would use the deck a lot more if I could easily see the details.

I have bought the book about the major arcanas. I'll try to take some pictures of it and post them over the course of the week

I have bought the book about the major arcanas. I'll try to take some pictures of it and post them over the course of the week

Ohhhh that would be AWESOME!!!!!! Thank you!!!  Also please provide your overall impressions of the book and how useful you think it is as an extra companion to the deck  :biggrin:  .... please  ;)

Wonderful review that perfectly captures what I enjoy about it so much - but it's true, they are rather small for how much detail they have; I've been using the Fool's Dog app as well to be able to zoom in and look at everything with more clarity. I hope a Llewellyn rep stalks this board and see how many people want a bigger version!

As promise I come back wih some pictures of the "Art of Shadowscapes book". I've posted the pages about the Moon and the Hermit. Sorry for the poor quality. I hope you'll be able to have a decent insight of the book.

 

https://postimg.cc/cgH5ZrDf

https://postimg.cc/Yh3gNb2q

https://postimg.cc/kBBR08x7

https://postimg.cc/VSRNrLj7

https://postimg.cc/zVj2csSs

https://postimg.cc/8jK958Jh

https://postimg.cc/N5SDSQ2P

 

There's always about 4 pages for each major arcana. It begins with an original border designed for the book, and the text from the LWB that comes with the deck. Then there's a full color image of the card that measures about 16/26cm. It's really large and it really helps seeing all the details! ^-^  <3. After that there's 2 pages with sketches and comentaries about the card or about a specific elements of the card.

If you buy the book to have a bigger picture of each card I think you'll be pleased.  :) I personally bought it to see the other images (borders and preliminary sketches) Sephanie PM Law made for the card. For images this book is great! But I was a little disapointed that there was not much comments. I wanted the autor to explain us her view of each card and how she comes to design a tarot deck and the choices she made. There's some elements, but I wanted more.

That said, I still think I'll buy the book about the minors  ;)

Thank you Esk!  I have put it on my Amazon Wishlist  :biggrin:

<3 it’s a beautiful deck