Tarot presents us with a set of universal archetypes and familiar destinies. In this collection, my goal was to create a modern iteration that reflects our current era. I have integrated contemporary elements like cryptocurrency culture, internet memes, and iconic pop culture figures, transforming them into tarot characters that resonate with the complexities of modern life.

This process was an act of creative exploration, breathing new power into the traditional symbolism and imbuing it with a fresh, relatable nuance. It is about reimagining these ancient symbols so they speak to the dreams, anxieties, and ironies of our present time.

I see it as the fundamental beauty of the artistic process. I was fully aware that merging nostalgia and futurism would be a significant challenge, as they are seemingly incompatible forces. However, I dedicated myself to extensive research, and through that exploration, I discovered fascinating points of convergence.

Abstraction became the key. It allows for the creation of a visual language where this intentional dissonance does not just work, it creates a unique and hidden beauty. The strangeness is the point. My work is admittedly segmented and niche by design. Because of that, I do not seek mass appeal. Instead, I invite viewers to engage with the work closely, hoping it opens a new perspective on how we can synthesize the past and the future into a new summary of the present.

If I have to choose, I feel a strong connection to The Jester. My work involves subverting traditional expectations of tarot by injecting memes and internet culture, much like a jester challenges the status quo with humor and irony. The Jester is not just about comedy, it is about revealing truth through a different, often absurd, lens. That is exactly what I try to do make people see familiar archetypes in a completely new and thought-provoking way.

The greatest challenge was indeed conveyed through color and light. I intentionally maintain a limited color palette in my work, which presents the interesting question of how to connect this visual restraint to complex emotional themes.

The answer is found in the process of abstraction. I do not have a simple formula. Instead, I engage in a rigorous process of trial and error, meticulously adjusting lighting and hues. There are moments where I will stare at a piece for an hour, deeply unsatisfied, feeling that something is not right.

Therefore, every outcome is the result of countless calculations and adjustments made until it meets my personal standard of satisfaction. The work is finished only when I feel it is complete. Once released, I embrace the perspective of the audience, allowing them to bring their own interpretations and judgments to the piece.

My work is primarily created using Blender for 3D modeling. The essential technique involves sculpting the models. I often utilize AI to generate a base model initially, which I then meticulously modify and reshape according to my vision.

Within Blender, I employ a toon shader and outlined shapes. This approach is crucial as it gives the renders a distinctive, illustrated quality, despite being fully three-dimensional. All color work is also completed within the Blender environment.

Once the 3D render is finalized, I export it to Photoshop. There, I apply the final abstract touches and textures. This combination of 3D precision and 2D post-processing is the fundamental technique behind my entire process.

I constructed this visual vocabulary by selecting objects that bridge our tangible history with our digital present. Each element was chosen for its layered symbolism to communicate specific facets of a character's role in this modern mythology.

These objects function as essential narrative tools that instantly convey a figure's status, vulnerabilities, and function within the digital realm. For example, crowns translate traditional power into new forms of influence like viral fame or algorithmic authority. Masks explore the tension between our public and private selves in an age of curated identities. Jewelry acts as data points and status symbols, similar to digital assets that signify value and belonging. Digital interfaces form the backdrop where these human dramas unfold, connecting each figure to the networks that define our era.

Collectively, they allow me to build characters that feel both timeless and immediately relevant, using a language of symbols that viewers intuitively understand yet are encouraged to reinterpret.

My hope is that collectors will acquire pieces from the Synapse series based on which characters they feel a personal connection with. In doing so, they can project their own perspectives and narratives onto the card they have chosen. I intentionally avoid imposing a single, fixed interpretation, as I want to leave room for their imagination to define the card's meaning. It would be incredibly interesting to see collectors play along with the cards they collect, ultimately contributing their own unique viewpoint to the work's story.

This series is built on a foundation of classical art history, but it is filtered through a contemporary lens. The most direct reference is to the tradition of portraiture, specifically the symbolic portraiture of the Renaissance. Just as old masters used objects, clothing, and backgrounds to convey a subject's status, virtue, or story, I use digital interfaces, meme iconography, and modern status symbols to achieve the same narrative goal for a 21st-century audience. The compositional principles of balance, symbolism, and narrative are classical, but the visual language is utterly contemporary, creating a dialogue between where we've been and where we are now.

It is unequivocally both. The tension between revelation and concealment is the very engine of the series narrative and aesthetic. Narratively, this ambiguity mirrors our contemporary condition. We exist in a world of overwhelming data where true understanding is often obscured by misinformation, algorithmic filters, and the curated personas we project. Concealment is not an absence of story, but the story itself. It speaks to the privacy we sacrifice, the data we cannot see, and the futures that remain uncertain.

Aesthetically, this is achieved through a deliberate visual language. The use of color fringing, scan lines, and assertive cropping creates a sense of something partially decoded or transmitted. We see these figures through a lens of diagnostics and interference, as if we are accessing a file that is still loading or a signal that is not entirely clear. The polished surfaces reflect our aspirations, while the worn textures hint at the hidden burdens beneath.

Ultimately, the aesthetic is the narrative. The visual grammar of glitches and interfaces does not just illustrate the concept. It embodies it. The work invites a double reading. You see a portrait, and you simultaneously see the system thinking about the portrait. This forces the viewer to become an active participant, piecing together the truth from what is revealed and what is intentionally concealed.

I absolutely envision this as a living and evolving project, not a closed chapter. The nature of a deck is that it is never truly complete, it is a system designed for expansion and new combinations.

As our culture and technology continue to shift, so too will the archetypes that define our experience. I see myself continuously expanding this vocabulary, introducing new figures that speak to emerging forms of connection, power, and consciousness. The potential to incorporate dynamic media like animation and interactive elements is particularly compelling, allowing the cards to truly come alive.

This series is a foundation. It establishes a visual language that I plan to build upon, ensuring the work remains a fluent and ongoing dialogue between the past, the present, and the future we are rapidly creating.