Saturday 13 September 2014

Order from chaos - the craftsman in Daniloff Tarot

Today's card is 3 of Pentacles from Daniloff Tarot, a self-published deck from Alexander Daniloff. This card shows off a few of the qualities of the minors in the deck. The colours are more limpid than in the majors, slightly washed-out hues. Another thing to notice is the curious faces in the deck. They seem 'put together', like rag dolls or puppets more than human beings. If you look closely, you can see that the man's nose looks 'attached' to his face. I find this style of art interesting. It's a sort of 'Wizard of Oz Scarecrow' look. It is pretty consistent throughout the deck. Human figures have faces that remind me of puppets.

The 3 of Pentacles (or Coins) here portrays the expected scene of a craftsman working on a cathedral. It has the usual configuration (from RWS) of three coins carved into an archway. In addition, there are three gold coins on his garments (shoulders and hat). Interestingly, the two observers (a priest and a nobleman) are missing from the scene, and so the interpretation of collaboration or team work is less obvious, though one could still read them in I suppose -- there has to be a patron of this project, and the building, presumably, is still a cathedral. The work being does seems a bit more shambolic, with that rather haphazard-looking scaffolding in the back and some sort of copper pot with liquid slopping over its side. Still, the theme of working to a plan, of crafting something carefully and diligently, remains.

I found out on Thursday I have been shortlisted for Area Librarian and my assessment is next week. I need to begin work today on my 10-minute presentation. Right now I feel about as shambolic and mournful as this guy looks. But he'll make order out of the mess (as soon as he realises he's got the plans upside down) and so will I. :)

7 comments:

  1. This seems to be a beautiful deck - I like your comparison with the Scarecrow from Oz, which is a perfect image for this card, embodying the necessary study before starting a job. Good luck for Thursday!

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    1. Thanks, it's actually Wed 24 Sep. :D

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  2. Most of the time once you get started the flow will follow :)
    Good luck! I am sure you will do great!

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    1. I did some reading today and beginning to get my thoughts in order. Mild panic walking home when I got it in my head that it this Wed! But it is actually not until next Wed. :D

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  3. The chap's garments look pretty grand, so perhaps he's enjoying some success already. Best of luck with the presentation :-)

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    1. True, never thought of it that way. :)

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  4. Best of luck! I'm sure you'll do an excellent job planning for the presentation :)

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