BY NORMAN BORDEN | Even if you’ve never seen a Tarot deck, visited a psychic to discover “what’s in the cards” or believed in the supernatural, the 24 photographs in Victoria Goldman’s latest exhibition will open your eyes to the imagery and mythology behind Tarot. Goldman’s misty, soft-focus interpretations may also help you understand why many people around the world use these cards for personal guidance. Still, if you want to better appreciate her work, it helps to know a little about the subject.
Tarot as a means of divination is said to have originated in fourteenth century Italy, but many diverse cultures claim some connection to it.
Tarot is a deck of 78 cards, divided into the major and minor Arcana. The major Arcana consists of 22 cards that use the imagery of archetypes like the Devil, the Fool and the World to represent the forces that influence our lives and the lessons that life teaches us. The minor Arcana is more like a deck of traditional playing cards, with four different suits: wands, cups, swords and pentacles (representing the elements fire, water, air and earth).
These deal with the concerns of our daily lives, while the archetypes in the major Arcana deal with the larger issues of life — from love to death. These 22 archetypes, which are traditionally numbered from 0 to XXI, are the basis of Goldman’s exhibition.
The artist says, “The idea of the show is that these archetypes are in each one of us. My hope is that they will call to us to be more regal in our lives and each aspect of life — birth, death, love, tragedy and humor — is to be honored.”
Goldman became fascinated with Tarot about 20 years ago after she received a deck as a gift and began using the cards while traveling and photographing in Asia. She says, “It was kind of a spontaneous journey so I would poll the cards and let them tell me what my next move and next best destination should be. I use the cards to help me focus on what’s most important to me.” Although there are a number of ways to read them, Goldman usually just pulls one card from the deck or else uses what’s called a ten-card spread.
The idea for re-interpreting the Tarot came to the artist back in 1999, but it took her more than a decade to conceive and create all 22 images. In fact, many were created just a few months ago.
Using a Polaroid SX-70 camera and film as well as a vintage twin-lens Rolleiflex, her soft focus interpretations of these mythical figures are reminiscent of the work of Francesca Woodman and Julia Margaret Cameron, which Goldman considers to be important influences.
While there are undoubtedly countless interpretations of the archetypes, the ones that Goldman has created for her exhibition take them to another level.
A good example is the Fool, who is thought to be a young, naive person on the road of life, gaining new experiences and seeing new possibilities along the way, finally reaching the World or the end of the journey. Explaining her interpretation, Goldman says, “The entire story of the Arcana is called ‘The Fool’s Journey.’ It’s all about trust. There’s this openness and willingness as shown by the trapeze and an openheartedness. It’s certainly an image open to interpretation, for all we can see is a figure on a trapeze against a black background.
In many of the photographs, Goldman uses a female model to represent a specific archetype. For example, in “The Wheel of Fortune,” she photographs the woman in a glamorous dress that shimmers from the reflected light. Her back faces us as she spins the archetypical wheel of fortune that is hidden by the darkness. It represents the cyclical nature of life — where the wheel will stop, no one knows. I found it to be one of the more engaging photographs in the show, but its actual size also adds impact: the 30 x 40 inch Giclee print on the back wall of the gallery is the largest in the exhibition.
While some Tarot decks show the Devil as a satyr — half-man, half goat with wings of a vampire bat — in Goldman’s view, the “Devil” is not evil, but Capricornian. The model’s hair is tufted to resemble a goat’s horns and a real snake is wrapped around the model’s shoulders to symbolize this Devil’s earthiness. The soft focus makes the image feel dream-like and mysterious.
The end of the Fool’s Journey is “The World,” and here too, the artist offers her unique interpretation. The same model appears again, except here she lies half-naked on a blanket surrounded by roses and other flowers, embracing a globe. Goldman explains that this symbolizes the responsibility we have to protect the world.
This is an exhibition that demands your attention and your time. Look at “Judgment,” “The Empress,” “Justice” and the other major Archetypes, and maybe you can see what’s in the cards.
VICTORIA GOLDMAN: MYTHICOS DIVINARE
Through December 14
Wed.–Sun, 12–7 p.m.
At Robin Rice Gallery
325 W. 11th St.
Btw. Washington & Greenwich Sts.
Call 212-366-6660
or visit robinricegallery.com
Norman Borden is a New York-based writer and photographer. The author of more than 100 reviews for NYPhotoReview.com and a member of Soho Photo Gallery and ASMP, his image “Williamsburg” was chosen by juror Jennifer Blessing, Curator of Photography at the Guggenheim, for inclusion in the upcoming 2014 competition issue of “The Photo Review.” Seventy of his contemporary photographs are in “Synagogues of New York’s Lower East Side,” which Fordham University Press just reissued as a trade paperback. Visit normanbordenphoto.com.
