Artist‘s Statement

I’ve been writing about Vibrating Tarot and adding to this website for three years now. My most refined explanation of the project can be found on the main home page. 

But how did it all start? Where did it all come from? And what does it all mean?

Those questions are easy to answer.

The day after my apartment building burnt down, I went out and bought a Tarot deck and a Magic Wand. That was the day a brand new seed was planted.

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Years ago, when I was still in high school, I remember someone saying that the jobs we’d be working as adults don’t exist yet because we would be inventing those jobs ourselves as we get out into the world. 

I owe my entire professional life to those words, as no other have been more accurate when describing my career. 

After I got my Bachelor of Design from Your/Sheridan in 2011, no one ever told me to start working on any of the projects I’ve developed, and certainly no one told me to start building this Tarot project up from scratch. I didn’t know a single person in the pleasure product industry in early 2020, and I didn’t even know that most of their products existed.

Coming to this project predominately from a graphic design background, and secondly from a Tarot and divination background, the pleasure products were what I needed help with to fully understand.

A community informed approach was adopted from the start, and in the early months and first years of the project, I ran questionnaires and surveys to discover the landscape of the products available and to tap into the consciousness of my prospective target market.

I still welcome input from anyone out there who has something to share with me, and you can find me asking for you to reach out in various spots on my website. Until all the contracts are signed and the deck has been sent off to the printer, I will always be open and willing and eager to hear your input and suggestions.

After a variety of big names in the pleasure product industry started giving me positive feedback and agreeing to be involved in the project, I knew I had something worthwhile. 

I've had the opportunity to meet with a variety of people in the pleasure product industry over the past three years, and have taken direction from them in terms of outlining the details of their legal questions, and taking their advice on building our licensing agreements. 

I developed the project far enough to approach US Games, the owners of the RWS Tarot deck in order to solve the copyright question once and for all, and upon reviewing my progress, their Vice President endorsed the project, wishing us “Good Luck”. 

We're at the point now when the majority of the artwork has been completed with the initial permission and approval of the majority of participating companies. Now is the time when we are coming together to approve the final images and sign the licensing agreements. 

I’ve invited dozens of different companies to be involved in the project, from big corporations to small businesses to individual artists, from across the globe, so that the deck of cards embraces a large variety of different products and more faithfully resembles our own individual and unique collections. 

That being said, I have always employed a critical eye. Vibrating Tarot is made up of iconic products from reputable companies. I have many people to thank for refining my decisions and bringing greater context and meaning to the choices I’ve made. 

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It's not enough to just have a great idea. It has to come at the right time and the circumstances have to be ideal in order to follow through with it. On top of that, you need the door to be open for you.

I realize how fortunate I am to be working on this project with the support of so many. Never once did I want to treat it with haste or with less consideration than it deserves. I never wanted it to just be some joke or novelty item, or for it to amount to a series of web art or some elaborate meme.. I believe it can be a worthwhile product in the pleasure product and occult market places and I've always approached its artwork, its message, and the rhetoric surrounding it with respect and dignity. Please read more about this below. 

To everyone in the community who I’ve been in contact with, thank you. You have all given me different things to consider and this project would not be the same without your input. If you have ever interacted with Vibrating Tarot, please know that you have had a direct hand in shaping its landscape. 

To those adult pleasure product companies that I have wonderful relationships with and permission to move forward with the project, I thank you for your ongoing support. 

To those that I am still in discussions with, I respect and value your companies, your products, and your intellectual property more than you know. For the past three years, we’ve been taking steps towards a licensing agreement that would grant me permission to publish Vibrating Tarot. 

I’ll always be grateful for your consideration and I’m certain that when the time is right, we’ll find the right path forward.

For more info, please explore the rest of the website, and don't hesitate to contact me anytime.

Frank Lawrence, B.Des

(he/they)

Vibrating Tarot

by Pallor Publishing

vibratingtarot@gmail.com