¶ I will be interviewed this Wednesday, Nov. 9th on Blogtalk Radio – Pagan Perspectives by Rev Sylvanus Treewalker – 6pm CST or 4pm PST. We’ll be talking about my latest book, Who Are You in the Tarot? Follow the link to chat and listen to the radio interview live or after the show. Read the latest review of my book here.
¶ Artist Hugo Baur recently painted this watercolor portrait of Waite and Smith that he calls “The High Priestess and the Magician.”
Baur explains:
As the Waite-Smith tarot was the result of a collaboration I only thought it natural to make a double portrait. Nevertheless I don’t hold much sympathy for Waite as he didn’t pay Pamela the money and respect she deserved. Still, without him this deck would never have existed, and his influence on the major arcana was considerable. But no explanation is needed for the fact that I placed Pamela in the centre and on the foreground, as it is her artwork and unbelievable spiritual insight that made the Waite Smith deck so special. I hope that fellow admirers of Pamela will consider this painting to be a truthfull homage to an artist that never got the respect she deserved.
¶ Just read a novel from 1987 with a good sprinkling of tarot in it: Second Sight by Mary Tannen. It recounts the intertwined lives of at least four families in a small, New Jersey industrial town. The plot revolves around a single working mother (a tarot and palm reader) finding “The One” she is destined to be with, and a young historian uncovering the complex interrelationships that lie at the base of the continually evolving town. While an essentially light and easy read, this book explores deeper themes and more complex literary symbolism than one would expect from the simple story line:—mysticism versus greed, old families versus new immigrants, nature versus industry. It deserves a good read and is readily available second-hand.
¶ I have a limited number of DVDs available from the two webinars I did for Global Spiritual Studies (include PowerPt presentations):
- “An Analysis of the Role of Cartomancers through Western Art” – 2 DVDs – $32 (includes mailing in the US)
- “Who Are You in the Tarot?” – 1 DVD – $20 (includes mailing in the US)
Payable through PayPal – contact me here if you are interested.
Mary K. Greer has made tarot her life work. Check here for reports of goings-on in the world of tarot and cartomancy, articles on the history and practice of tarot, and materials on other cartomancy decks. Sorry, I no longer write reviews. Contact me
Mary K. Greer's Tarot Blog 
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November 8, 2011 at 7:33 am
Patricia Dreger
I LOVE this painting of Hugo Baur’s…is it available as a poster or print?
There is something that interests me very much about the creation of the RWS tarot deck, which has become the standard in tarot decks…the image that comes to mind when a given tarot card is mentioned is most likely that of Pamela Colman Smith. She will forever be THE visual image.
There seems to be a drive, almost a compulsion, for many Taroists to denigrate A.E.Waite while praising Pamela Colman Smith. As Hugo Baur is quoted here, “…I don’t hold much sympathy for Waite as he didn’t pay Pamela the money and respect she deserved.”
This qualification, one might say, almost an apology, is unnecessary in my view. For one thing, I don’t think “collaboration” is the right term–Waite hired Smith as an artist, to do a work-for-hire. A collaboration would have been an author who actually partners with an artist to do a job…on a contract basis with a 50-50 or other specification of profit split.
Pamela Colman Smith was an artist of some renown, and was paid an agreed upon fee. It isn’t really accurate to say that she did not recieve the “respect she deserved.” She certainly has, and her artwork has been forever linked to Waite’s contribution. There can be a million RWS “clones” but we all know there was only one Pamela Colman Smith….so her FOOL and her MAGICIAN and so on are unique, and are the prominent image…certainly great respectful recognition..
One might argue that the cards should have predicted that the images which Pamela created would become priceless…so payment for her work should have been based on an illusive “future worth.”
Say I write a book, and hire an artist to illustrate it. I’ll pay X$$ for these illustrations. IF and WHEN the book is published, and it becomes a best seller and makes a lot of money–do I have an obligation to go back and multiply the original payment? The artist’s illustrations will likely become more famous than the prose, and critics will no doubt lament the fact that my artist was underpaid.
This has interested me for some time.
Patricia Dreger
aka PearlCat
November 8, 2011 at 7:42 am
Patricia Dreger
In this delightful portrait the genius of Pamela Colman Smith comes through, in her portrayal as the High Priestess, and the genius of A.E.Waite in finding Pamela and hiring HER…from among countless available artists…to create the enduring standard of Tarot images. As the Magician, Waite is in the background, backing the Magic that was Pamela’s.
A matter of serendipity … what if SHE would not have been available or had not been interested in the work?
Patricia Dreger
November 8, 2011 at 8:23 am
Janet Boyer (@JanetBoyer)
Fascinating comments, Patricia!
November 10, 2011 at 4:10 pm
Patricia Dreger
thank you, Janet! I appreciate your comment.
Patricia Dreger
December 27, 2011 at 8:01 pm
portlandian
I found some old recordings of Lowry Dreger and I’ve been trying to figure out who he was…I know it’s a weird question, but…any relation?
December 27, 2011 at 8:12 pm
Patricia Dreger
I never heard of Lowry Dreger…I’ll have to google him and see if I can learn anything more about him. If he was related it would have been to my husband’s family, and I have limited information about them except that in the area where I live there are lots of Dregers.
December 28, 2011 at 8:56 pm
portlandian
Ok, thanks for getting back to me!
I’ve been looking online, but you’re the closest I got (I think his granddaughter is named “Patty Dreger”). Maybe someone in the community of Dregers would know something (I’d appreciate you putting the word out but no worries, I don’t expect anything). If you might be interested in hearing some anyway (or maybe your husband would be), I’ve put some of my favorites on one of my podcasts here:
http://portlandians.com/2011/12/26/014-the-lowry-dreger-files/
Take care…
January 24, 2012 at 6:30 pm
January Tarot Cycle, Part 1: Seeking the Spiritual Other. | Lifencompass
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