Verdance Tarot

Verdance Tarot

Changes in majors: mostly traditional names (II Magus instead of Magician)

Suit names: Wands, Cups, Swords, Coins

Court cards: Page, Knight, Queen, King

Card backs: fully reversible

Cardstock: thin, matte, flexible

Extra cards: two information cards (about the artist and her earlier deck, the Shadowscapes Tarot)

Additions: a simple, sturdy carton card stand for one card, dark blue with a half-moon symbol

The Verdance Tarot is a stunningly beautiful deck with an interesting name. It combines the lushness and abundance of the verdant world with the flow and movement of dance, not only in its name but in every card.

Stephanie Pui Mun-Law’s first deck, the Shadowscapes Tarot, has been praised for its gorgeous art and atmosphere of magic. Could we imagine that this artist has developed and grown to become even better? No, but she has done it. The only point of critique frequently mentioned about the Shadowscapes Tarot is its size – it’s a bit too small to see the exquisite details properly, and while its silvery-lavender borders are beautiful, they take up valuable space on the cards.

The Verdance Tarot is borderless, and the card names are inserted into small, transparent banners at the bottom of the cards. The card names and numbers are set in a small, brown font that doesn’t disturb the atmosphere at all. Laid out next to each other, the cards merge into a rich tapestry. When we look at this world, we seem to acquire a new set of eyes, allowing us to see more than we usually do, to see deeper, to get a glimpse of the truth behind the beauty.

Most of the deck’s protagonists are animals. The few human figures are not actually humans but fairies or nature spirits, and very few look at us and notice us (like the Nine of Coins). The Knights ride on mythological animals, and the Kings and Queens contemplate the world they are ruling. All these wonderful creatures are shown in their world and reveal it to us.

Mythological creatures like the unicorn, hippogriff and phoenix blend seamlessly with the warbler, maple tree and blackbirds.

The full-page, full-colour illustrations of the excellent book allow us to see the cards in detail, and they are extremely detailed. Wherever you focus your eye, more and more details appear. It reminds me a bit of fractals with their endless complexity.

There is a lot of movement in these cards, but it’s never hasty or disruptive. It’s a serene, elegant movement in waves, spirals, arches and complex patterns.

The book is a valuable addition to the deck. It lists the symbolic meanings of the animals and plants that appear in the deck, along with the cards on which these animals appear. The dragonfly, for example, stands for transformation and spiritual growth, and it shows up in no less than ten cards, from the High Priestess and Temperance to the 10 and Page of Cups. If you want to study this deck, I’d suggest you group together all the dragonfly cards, all the dandelion cards, or all the starfish cards, and see them as a whole. These motifs bind the deck together. Even without the book explanation, you can feel intuitively what these animals and plants want to tell you.

The watercolour art of this deck is masterful and inspired. The compositions seem to have endless depth and complexity, and while the focus of each card is painted in a highly controlled and detailed manner, there are areas in each card where the artist has let the paint and water interact more freely. These are the areas I love especially.

The colouring is rich, with translucent washes that unite the whole deck. Blues, greens, purples and yellows flow into each other. These are not card illustrations but visionary works of art, inspired by the tarot and inspiring to the reader.

The book offers three spreads for this deck: the Inner Garden spread, the See the Forest for the Trees spread, and the Sacred Grove spread. This deck is ideal for meditation, deep personal insight, and gaining a new perspective on life. It’s not a beginner’s deck; I imagine a beginner would be overwhelmed by the richness of the art and the symbolic meanings of each detail, but if you know the tarot archetypes and love the magic of nature, this is a deck you won’t wish to miss. I keep mine in a piece of silk that I painted many years ago with purple hues, and some of the card backgrounds remind me of silk paintings.