Deck: The Dark Exact Tarot
Writer & Artist: Coleman Stevenson
Publisher: Self-Published
Overall Rating: 7/10
Cardstock: These cards are a different shape than the standard tarot card, a bit more square, more like some oracle decks I own, but larger than poker size – approximately 4 inches x 3 inches. They have a semi-matte texture, and they riffle shuffle pretty well. My only complaint any the cardstock is that small dings to the edges tend to expose the white of the card interior, which is in sharp contrast to the black face of the cards. But one could always take a sharpie to the edges.
Artwork: The artwork is very minimalist, tarot symbology pared down and distilled to its key essences. The minor cards are mostly pips, but arranged in an evocative manner with the occasional additional symbol, like an alchemical elemental triangle, and the heart in the Three of Swords. The Majors have more detailed images but still usually one main element: a flower bulb for The Hermit, lines on a person’s palm for Judgement, an ouroboros for Death.
Book: The booklet is very short and has very small font but manages to pack some really good keywords for upright and reversal readings of all the cards. It also has a very brief explanation of tarot in general, and two spreads: past/present/future, and a Celtic Cross. There is also a full sized guide book, but I haven’t purchased that (yet?) and can’t speak to its contents or quality.
Likes: I think that this deck really does what it set out to do: be a minimalist black and white, very readable deck. It fills its aesthetic niche very, very well. I also think that the inclusion of a second Fool card, so that there’s one for the beginning of the journey and one for the conclusion is a really interesting touch.
Dislikes: I think I might’ve liked these cards better if they were actually poker sized and if the edges were bonded or coated somehow but those are really very minor detractions and very personal preferences.
Overall Recommendation
I do really like this deck, I think it’s a great addition to my collection and really is the best of the black and white decks I was looking at with more minimalist artwork. It’s a nice counterpoint to some of my busier fantasy art decks. But I’m not sure I’d recommend this deck for a newbie reader or for someone reads more intuitively based on what in the artwork draws their eye. A newbie reader might be able to learn with this deck if they also buy the full sized guide book, but without having seen the book I couldn’t say for sure.