Gendron Tarot
This seems to be one of those decks you either love or hate. Personally, I love it and use it quite a lot. It is in the Rider-Waite (RW) style in that all cards, even the pips, are illustrated, and in that the cards closely follow RW names, order and meaning. There are a few exceptions in the names: the Magician is called the Magus, the Hanged Man is the Hanged One, Death is Transition, the Devil is the Deceiver, and the World is the Universe. Suits are wands, cups, swords and pentacles. Courts are king, queen, prince and princess.
The images are a far cry from RW, though. Gendron takes a fresh new approach to tarot card illustrations. The deck has a feminine feel without excluding or downplaying men. The colors are wonderful, and there are lots of translucent figures and angel-type beings of light.
The cards are 2.75 by 4.75 inches and handle easily. They aren't stiff, but are durable. My deck is used frequently and holds up very well.
The little white boolet that comes with the deck is the best I've seen so far. It's about twice as thick as others and gives lots of information. For each card, associated Goddesses are listed according to their directions, Hebrew letter, astrology, animal significance, associated symbolism meanings, card meaning and reversed meaning.
I recommend this deck for collectors, feminist readers, those who love strong visual decks, and intermediate to advanced readers. Beginners may do better with a deck that more closely follows RW symbolism, but could use this deck as well. The symbolism is there and is explained well in the little white booklet. There are a couple of nudes, and the deck does have an overall Goddess-based feel to it, so I don't use it for my more easily offended clients.
This is one of my favorite decks for personal use.
Jump to:
See cards from this deck
Back to tarot deck index
Back to main index
