Several weeks ago I reached a crossroads regarding my career options. At times like these I often turn to the cards, not only for guidance but also for comfort. I‘ve lived with these images for so long that I find it increasingly re-assuring to lose myself in them, as if they are doorways to another world.

Imagine me then, reaching this important juncture and shuffling my tarot deck. Ten cards, Celtic Cross, Quantum Tarot, Clear questions. No problem, I think. Quite the reverse.

As soon as I laid out the cards I realised they weren’t going to tell me about the questions I’d posed. What was actually in front of me was a ten card spread speaking very loudly about the present state of my personal life and my love life in the past.

Was the Delphic Oracle this infuriating!? The lesson of the day is that any oracle, ancient or modern, is an elusive and mysterious beast. They speak the truth but that doesn’t always mean it will be the truth you want to hear.

When will I ever learn? The best readings always result from an open mind. If you go into a reading, ask questions by all means but don’t always assume that the questions you’re asking will be the ones to be answered. Tarot Cards when shuffled are by their very nature random. You can’t control the unpredictable elements of nature so don’t even try.

Rather than putting your emphasis on specific questions when you come to a reading, place the emphasis on just bringing yourself into that quiet space where you can let the cards speak as they need to. You are bringing your whole self and your whole life. Let the tarot do its work and don’t worry about the rest.

When you turn the cards over you are revealing a pattern of randomly chosen images and symbols. The unpredictability is what catches the psyche off guard and makes our reactions to these images so pointed and telling. Whichever cards move or disturb you the most, chances are these are the ones with the important answers.

Returning to my reading , I asked about my work but it seems that’s not what I need to know about. A raft of personal issues leapt out at me instead so I suppose I must simply listen and accept. I now know how it feels when you enquire about the meaning of life, the Universe and everything and the only answer you get is ‘42’. Frustrating but profound. Enigmatic but honest. The words ‘Get over it’ are coming to mind!

Fair Fortune,

Chris.

Chris Butler.

Illustrator for the Quantum Tarot. To be published by Kunati Books. September 2008.

Pre-order the Quantum Tarot from Amazon

What followed was far worse than I could have expected, sending me to bed for two days and wiping the best part of a week from my working calendar. What little work I did manage happened in short bursts and was invariably followed by an hour’s sleep on the couch to recover. This makes me sound old and decrepit but believe me, I am only in my forties I assure you!

Something that cheered me up immeasurably was the arrival of my copy of the new Deviant Moon Tarot by Patrick Valenza. Its arrival was timely as I had arranged to interview Patrick for my Tarot blog a few weeks ago. Having sent him the questions the week before, Patrick’s completed interview arrived back via email the same day as the deck itself. You can read the interview here.

It’s been lovely to work with a new deck (although I’m still thrilled to be working with the Quantum Tarot now our courtesy copies have arrived!). Leafing through both decks I’ve found myself drawn to the two ‘family’ cards; the Ten of Pentacles and the Ten of Cups. Being ill has made me realise just how important it is to have a family network around you. Even down to silly practical things like doing the shopping. At my worst I didn’t have the energy to walk up the stairs, let alone walk around a supermarket. It was the family who did the food shopping for me while I was ill.

A family can be blood relatives but they can also be a network of close and caring people that choose to stick by each other. Being ill always makes me feel somewhat vulnerable and times like these make me realise how lucky I am to have good family. I don’t take them for granted because I’m also made aware of how awful it must be to have no-one.

The Ten of Cups deals with the emotional riches of healthy family life whilst the Ten of Pentacles deals with the material practicalities of shared family wealth. Both are an essential part of healthy living. Family, in its widest sense of welfare and care hinges on matters of trust, compassion and integrity. Those who we think of as of family members, be it a blood family or not deserve our honour, our respect and our care. We receive the same in return and as such, we know that we are loved.

Being ill over the last week has shown me just how fortunate I am. For as long as it lasts I’ll cherish that good fortune.

Chris.

Chris Butler.

Illustrator for the Quantum Tarot. To be published by Kunati Books. September 2008.

Pre-order the Quantum Tarot from Amazon

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One of the new features on my site is a page devoted to my fellow Kunati authors . If you’re a regular visitor to this site you’ll know full well they are an inspiring bunch. I’ve included cover artwork for all of their books plus links to their personal sites and to many of their other blogs outside the Kunati web site

Apart from my illustrations for the Quantum Tarot, I’ve created four other tarot decks and three oracle decks. Several of these are now available in special hand made editions that can be purchased directly from my new site.

You’ll also be able to check out my latest project, The Son Tarot. I’ve posted a selection of images and you can share some of the ideas I’m developing for the companion book at the Son Tarot Blog.

My other main passion as some of you will know is classical music. Another recent project involved creating a series of images inspired by some of my favourite pieces for the 40^th birthday of a close friend. View these and read my new beginner’s guide to classical music blog too.

My home on the web is www.butlerart.co.uk . Do come and visit and I’ll look forward to seeing you there!

Fair Fortune,

Chris.

It pains me to admit that I have, on occasion, been accused of being a ‘Tarot Anorak’. Having reached the dawn of middle age, such criticism must be accepted with quiet resignation but I must point out my interests are far from being mono-minded and I question whether or not I fit into this category!

Apart from my (albeit consuming!) love of Tarot, I also have a great passion for classical music, art, theatre, gardening, reading and writing. I also used to be a regular and strong swimmer but laziness has caught up with me over recent years and I really must get back into a regular routine of visiting my local pool.

Having read this and other blog entries I’ll leave you to form your own conclusions regarding my ‘Anorak’ status although, even I have to admit that when I talk and write about the Tarot I do so with passion!

If this gets a little repetitive then why not visit one of my other blogs where you’ll be able to see me talking about another interest with equal fervour?

 I’ve been passionate about Classical Music since my late teens and this is what I now write about. Having had little musical education I had to learn from scratch. I still hardly read a note of music even after all these years but I’ve gleaned a wealth of music history knowledge from magazines, library books and CD booklets.

My knowledge may be wide but in effect I’m still very much a beginner and I’m most definitely an amateur. I listen for pure pleasure and I write my blog to communicate that pleasure and hopefully encourage others to listen to some of the great music I’ve discovered.

If you’re looking for in depth technical commentary, then I can’t give it to you. My music blog is written in the most basic layman’s terms for that’s all I know. What you will find there are subjective but honest opinions, as well as heartfelt admiration for the composers, music and performers I’m talking about.

Join me at Classical Music for idiots - by an idiot. It’s a blog for anyone who loves classical music but most of all, it’s a blog for anyone like myself who wants to explore this wonderful music from scratch, without any prior knowledge.

For the most part I’ll be sharing reviews of the best recordings I’ve encountered but I’ll also talk about practical things such as concert customs and etiquette. Have you ever wondered when to clap and when not to? Have you ever been too embarrassed to ask someone else? We’ll deal with those sorts of trivia here as well as with the music.

If I’m going to be accused of being an anorak then at least let it be said I’m a multi-faceted one!

Fair fortune,

Chris.

Chris Butler.

Illustrator for the Quantum Tarot. To be published by Kunati Books. September 2008.
Pre-order the Quantum Tarot from Amazon

Visit me at:
My Website
Kunati.com
Myspace
Facebook

My Blogs:
Chris Butler’s Kunati Blog
Amazon Blog
Chris Butler - Illustrator for the Quantum Tarot
A gay man and a tarot deck
Classical music for idiots by an idiot
Myspace

I interpret this card in one of two ways. It can signify the best that can possibly be achieved in a given situation. Alternately, it can be an over-arching issue that colours the whole situation. Sometimes it can be both.

In the Rider Waite Smith card, a richly dressed woman stands in a vineyard at harvest time. The vines are laden with grapes and within their foliage are nine pentacles. Sitting on the woman’s upraised hand is a tamed and hooded bird of prey. At her feet, a snail slowly makes its way across the pathway. In the distance, against the backdrop of a golden sky, you can see tall trees, hills and a castle.

One assumes that the castle and the vineyard are this woman’s personal domain. The abundant harvest and the pentacles are the fruits of her hard work whilst her right hand rests on the highest pentacle, subtly suggesting ownership. I see the bird of prey as a symbol of self discipline. Normally it would soar into the heavens yet it is tamed, hooded and subdued. This is a bird for gaming and will return to its mistress when called.

What speaks to me most is the combination of discipline and solitude. You sense that this woman has achieved her riches on her own through discipline, hard work and a certain amount of self sacrifice and this is very different from the shared family wealth of the Ten of Pentacles. Furthermore, the slow movement of the snail would symbolise that nothing here has happened quickly. The woman’s attainments have been long in the making.

Is she unhappy? That’s a difficult question to answer. She doesn’t look unhappy but she doesn’t look jubilant either. If anything, when you look closely at her face, there’s a gentle resignation, as if she’s had to make a choice between prosperity or emotional closeness.

I can relate to this, as many people probably will. Like many of my friends, I put career and financial issues first in my twenties and thirties, not giving any thought to settling down. I’m now a very comfortable and prosperous forty something but the fact remains, I’m on my own, as are the friends concerned.

Is this a good or a bad thing? I’d love to meet someone and settle down but the fact is my present state is neither one thing or the other, it just is. The lesson of this card for me is simple. Being coupled may have its bonuses but so does being single and successful.

Yet again the Tarot draws me to re-assess just how much I do have and to be thankful for it. The grass isn’t always greener on the other side.

Chris.

Chris Butler.
Illustrator for the Quantum Tarot. To be published by Kunati Books. September 2008.

Pre-order the Quantum Tarot from Amazon

Visit me at:
My Website
Kunati.com
Myspace
Facebook

My Blogs:
Chris Butler’s Kunati Blog
Amazon Blog
Chris Butler - Illustrator for the Quantum Tarot
A gay man and a tarot deck
Classical music for idiots by an idiot
Myspace

Cue a visit to my local New Age bookstore. I love going into shops like these, if only to browse through the Tarot decks and books. This particular store has a huge folio of card samples you can leaf through at your leisure before choosing a deck. Lively conversations can strike up in places like this, particularly once you start discussing the merits of various decks with fellow browsers. This is what happened on the visit concerned. The lady in question was a well spoken thirty something and initially seemed very pleasant, until the warning bells started to sound!

Back in the Eighties, I can remember the genteel but slightly barbed conversations various mothers of school friends would have over tea and biscuits at school events (when you’re a prefect serving the tea you hear and understand more than they give you credit for!). Nothing overtly unpleasant was ever said but under that genteel garden party veneer was an unspoken agenda, namely “I’m socially superior to you and by God I’ll make sure I remind you!”

This may seem a digression but believe me, there’s a definite New Age equivalent along the following lines: “I’m Psychically superior to you and by the Goddess I’ll make sure I remind you!!”

We’d been discussing a few different decks but within minutes this phenomenon began to rear it’s sinister head and my companion was picking up one deck after another, always with a slightly coy smile, letting me know the various different levels of affinity she felt with each one. The unspoken message? It seems that my companion could ‘sense’ the relative merits of each deck whilst I, mere mortal, had to rely on more earthly and analytical methods of assessment.

She finally fixated on a single deck, proclaiming that it seemed particularly attuned to her ‘energies’. Imagine my horror (and shamefully smug reaction!) when I realised she had chosen a well known deck featuring large amounts of graphic nudity. To my credit I did actually warn her it wasn’t the right deck for everyone. The shop assistant however was far more gracious and offered her a copy that was already open for further browsing!

It seems that the poor lady’s psychic abilities were not as well attuned as she would have liked us to believe. They certainly hadn’t detected the presence of miscellaneously exposed breasts, genitalia and general pudenda (The back of the box drops a few hints but her ‘energies‘ didn‘t prompt her to read that bit!). The sight of the fore-mentioned pudenda was obviously a shock to her sensibilities and left her in the impossible situation of having her psychic pretensions exposed. She hurriedly purchased a Rider Waite deck, awkwardly explaining that sometimes it’s best to stick with what you know!

Conclusions? I am not psychic. My energies are definitely not attuned. I have a slightly shameful tendency to draw humour from the embarrassment of others. Do I feel inferior? Definitely not!

Fair Fortune!

Chris.

Chris Butler.
Illustrator for the Quantum Tarot. To be published by Kunati Books. September 2008.

Pre-order the Quantum Tarot from Amazon

Visit me at:
My Website
Kunati.com
Myspace
Facebook

My Blogs:
Chris Butler’s Kunati Blog
Amazon Blog
Chris Butler - Illustrator for the Quantum Tarot
A gay man and a tarot deck
Classical music for idiots by an idiot
Myspace

Several cards leap out at me from the deck. The Wheel of Fortune with it’s multi-coloured roulette wheel contains happy and sad faces. It is both frivolous and profound. The clown in the Two of Pentacles walks a tightrope through clouds whilst winged ships sail the skies. What strikes me most at the moment is the Ace of Wands for the artist seems to have encapsulated the energy of this card perfectly.

When designing the Quantum Tarot Ace of Wands, the Robin Wood card hovered in my thoughts. The Quantum Ace has phallic overtones. A glowing rod of light stands erect from two atomic particles amidst the fires of a nebula. The Robin Wood Ace shows a similarly phallic magician’s wand between two sun flowers at its base. Embedded in the crystal shaft of the wand is a DNA double helix.

Each of the four suits from the Minor Arcana of the Tarot represent one of the four elements; Earth, Air, Fire and Water. The Aces, as the prime single object of each suit represent the pure expression of these elements. Wands, in the mainstream tradition are the Tarot’s symbol of fire.

In human terms, what is fire? Fire is the spark of transformation; it’s the energy of chemical reaction. Symbolically, fire represents our internal energy and most specifically our creative and transforming powers. Fire is the energy of potential so the image of the Ace of Wands as an energy charged phallic symbol is both apt and potent.

Not only are the aces the pure expression of their respective elements; they also indicate origins and beginnings. Just as the phallus on one level is the origin of pro-creative energy, so the Ace of Wands is the origin of fire. It contains within itself an abundance of creative energy to be channelled for almost infinite purposes.

This can be sexual energy being channelled towards union. Alternately, it can be artistic or creative energy, being channelled into artistic pursuits or career activities. We often use the term ‘libido’ to refer to our personal sexual energy but it means much more than this. As a term it over-arches all of our creative energies. The libido is our potential to create and to re-create in the best and widest sense.

When the Ace of Wands appears in a reading it represents a new upsurge of creative fire. It’s a joyful and optimistic card but its sheer power can burn the unwary who veer too close. Use your energies but channel them wisely.

Chris.

Chris Butler.

Illustrator for the Quantum Tarot. To be published by Kunati Books. September 2008.
Pre-order the Quantum Tarot from Amazon

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My Blogs:

Other great news this week: I’ve been invited once again to contribute to the Tarot Lover’s Calendar. I have contributed each year since the 2006 edition. The 2007 edition featured images from early editions of the Quantum Tarot and the Son Tarot and also front cover artwork by myself.

The 2009 edition will feature cards from my Millenaire Tarot de Marseilles amongst other decks. Thanks once again to Major Tom Schick for inviting me to contribute and for all the effort he puts into creating what has become one of the best known showcases for newly created Tarot decks.

The Quantum Tarot: Published by Kunati, Sept 2008.
Now available for pre-order from:

Amazon.com
Amazon UK
Amazon Canada
Chapters (Canada)
Amazon Japan
Amazon Germany
Amazon France

Fair Fortune!
Chris.

Chris Butler.
Illustrator for the Quantum Tarot. To be published by Kunati Books. September 2008.

Pre-order the Quantum Tarot from Amazon

Visit me at:
My Website
Kunati.com
Myspace
Facebook

My Blogs:
Chris Butler’s Kunati Blog
Amazon Blog
Chris Butler - Illustrator for the Quantum Tarot
A gay man and a tarot deck
Classical music for idiots by an idiot
Myspace

This is one of my oldest and dearest friends who I’ve known since childhood. She knows me intimately and is incredibly positive and supportive of my work. Above all, she has given me unreserved encouragement with regards to the publication of the Quantum Tarot. Despite this, I wasn’t really surprised by her reaction and a situation like this only serves to illustrate the often unspoken fear that the offer of a Tarot reading evokes.

This isn’t the first time this has happened to me. Among my friends, the Quantum Tarot has inspired much admiration on an artistic and intellectual level but I’m certain that many of them still view my pre-occupation with the Tarot with considerable bemusement. People just don’t trust the cards and often, without realising, their attitudes are coloured by deeply ingrained prejudices, acquired during their formative years.

I only have to look at my own up-bringing in the ‘70’s and ‘80’s to understand why. I was sent to a private ‘faith’ school and its deeply old fashioned ethos viewed the cards with fear and revulsion. They were seen as a tool of evil and had I dared to take my cards into school with me they would have been confiscated and destroyed. Wider society often views anything of an esoteric nature with comparable mistrust and people of my age or older may be liberal in their conscious outlook whilst still harbouring subconsciously unchallenged fears.

The bottom line is that many people still see the cards themselves as having a supernatural or threatening power. Cult cinema can be fun but even I have to admit that Doctor Terror’s House of Horrors or an incredibly camped up Jane Seymour dealing the Death card for James Bond have done little to alter common perceptions.

There is a fundamental problem here that even I must admit to recognising. If Vincent Price or Jane Seymour had dealt the cards then proceeded to tell their audience that they weren’t going to die, it would make for lousy cinema!

The tarot is an amazing tool for reflection, meditation and for mirroring the choices and possibilities in your life. If you fear the cards or see them as a heartless messenger of fate there is nothing to be gained. There can be no magic or supernatural power in 78 sheets of card. They are what they are - cards. The magic lies in the images printed on them and this magic is the power they have to inspire you.

Symbols can guide us and tell us much about our personal hopes and fears. Symbols and the way we react to them show us we have choices. The Tarot as a friendly guide can show us a myriad of possibilities as we dare to taste this freedom and plot our path in life. No single card image is good or evil. What matters is how we choose to react to them.

Chris.

Chris Butler.

Illustrator for the Quantum Tarot. To be published by Kunati Books. September 2008.

Pre-order the Quantum Tarot from Amazon

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Prior to this I worked in a variety of media. I used pencil for the bulk of my illustration work and pastel for private commissions. In later years I moved to painting in acrylics due to the influence of a very close friend. This same friend is responsible for me having the courage to give up a job in 2002 and to devote myself full time to an art/illustration career.

The friend in question is Tony Raymond, one of Europe’s leading decorative artists. I first met Tony in 1999 and it’s no understatement to say that he’s been my greatest inspiration to date. I vividly remember my first visit to his North London studio. At the time he was working on a mural for the Merchant Taylor’s building in the City of London. This vast image of St. Paul’s Cathedral was being painted on canvas, to be installed at a later date on the landing of the building’s grand staircase. I’d never been at close quarters to a work in progress on this scale before. The finished image would be over thirteen feet wide and I was spellbound not only by Tony’s skill as a painter but also by the sheer long term dedication needed to complete such a project.

Tony’s work adorns the walls and ceilings of some of Europe’s grandest buildings and stately homes, not to mention palaces across Europe and the Middle East. Due to the scale of such projects, Tony often employs a number of assistant painters in the same way the great masters would have done. Imagine how I felt when he chose me to work under his direction on a number of these projects.

Assistant work is fascinating and provides a very steep learning curve for any aspiring professional artist. The first lesson is that it’s not that glamorous! Your own ideas go straight out of the window by necessity and what matters most is following the direction of the artist you’re assisting.

Most of your time is spent blocking in background colours etc, in preparation for the main artist who will fill in the fine detail. Every so often you are given a complete section of the design to complete, should time constraints require it. In such cases I had to learn to paint the way Tony paints so the finished result would be a seamless part of the greater design.

I can’t say I succeeded every time and I definitely can’t say my boss was always happy with the results but ultimately it was the best possible training I could have for any future commercial work. I was learning to follow a brief to the letter and deliver the goods within set time constraints. Imagine my pride when I’m finally handed the designs for a ceiling in grand house owned by a well known celebrity and Tony asks me to complete the whole job. Granted, it was only the bathroom ceiling but as celebrity commissions go you have to start somewhere!

This is where many artists fail. It’s not that they don’t have talent. In relative terms I have far less talent than many people less successful than I am. Where they fail is through their inability to paint or illustrate anything outside their own sphere of inspiration. Maybe art schools are to blame for this but it’s a myth that artists can get by on painting what they want to paint. Like the old masters themselves, artists make a living by painting or creating what their patrons ask them to create. If the commission in hand doesn’t float your boat then quite frankly, it’s tough. You give the client what they want and you take the money.

This is especially true of an illustrator who will nearly always be working to a commercial brief. If you’re exceptionally lucky like me, you’ll land a star project every now and again that fires you up creatively and brings commercial success too. For me, The Quantum Tarot was such a project and here’s hoping it won’t be the last!

Chris.

Chris Butler.

Illustrator for the Quantum Tarot. To be published by Kunati Books. September 2008.

Pre-order the Quantum Tarot from Amazon

Visit me at:

My Blogs: