The Tarot: Using the Cards to Spark Your Creativity
- artbykagsy
- Feb 15
- 5 min read
Tarot cards have been used for many moons as a divination tool to gain insight into the future, explore the subconscious, and connect with spiritual energies. They have a been a guiding energy for many when life has been difficult to navigate.
But did you know that the tarot can also serve as a powerful source of artistic inspiration?
No? Well - now you do! Whether you’re a professional artist, a hobbyist, or someone who simply enjoys a creative past-time, tarot cards can open up new channels for self-expression, design, and imagination. In this blog post, I’ll dive into how tarot readings can influence your art process, provide guidance for your creative journey, and help you tap into the rich symbolism, meaning and energy of the tarot.
1. Using Tarot for Creative Prompting
One of the simplest and most effective ways to use tarot for inspiration is by drawing a card (or multiple cards) and using the imagery and symbolism to inspire a piece of art. Each card in the tarot deck carries its own unique meaning, and those meanings can be interpreted visually in various ways, for example:
The Fool might inspire a whimsical, playful piece full of freedom and adventure with bold, bright colours and brush strokes.
The Empress could lead to a lush, earthy watercolour painting or sculpture centred on growth, fertility, or abundance.
The Moon could spark a mysterious and dreamlike oil painting full of surrealism and shadowy figures using dark blues hues and silvery greys.
By pulling a card and reflecting on its symbols, colours, and theme, you can create a piece of art that captures the essence of the card and bring those metaphysical messages into the physical world. This exercise can push you out of any creative block, as it gives you a focal point and removes the need to come up with completely new.
2. Tarot and Colour Inspiration
Colors play a crucial role in both tarot and art. Every tarot card has a specific color palette that reflects its energy, emotions, and messages, for example:
The Sun is filled with bright yellows, oranges, and golds, symbolising joy, enlightenment, and vitality.
The Hermit often appears with darker, more muted colours like deep blues, greys and purples, representing introspection and solitude.
The Star radiates cool tones like silvery blues and soft whites, representing hope, healing, and inspiration.
By looking at the colours of each card you to explore different colour palettes and see what colour combinations work and how those colours bring about a certain energy and message without spending hours deliberating and experimenting. Whether you’re working with paint, digital media, or sculpture, tarot cards can help you discover new combinations and create moods that align with the your own masterpiece.
3. Drawing from the Archetypes
Tarot cards are rich with archetypal figures that have deep psychological and spiritual significance. These archetypes can act as a mirror to your inner world, helping you tap into deeper themes and stories within yourself, for example:
The Magician embodies the energy of manifestation, creativity, and mastery of the material world. Creating an artwork based on The Magician could be a dynamic representation of energy, transformation, and potential you wish to harness for yourself.
The High Priestess represents intuition, inner wisdom, and mystery. You could create a piece that evokes a sense of mysticism, introspection, and spiritual depth, using symbols of the moon, water, and veils.
Exploring these archetypes through your art allows you to create pieces that resonate and connect with you on a deeply personal level. Whether you express these ideas through portraiture, symbolism, or abstract forms, you’re able to channel powerful energies into your art and connect with a part of you that maybe you can’t in every day life.
4. Storytelling Through Tarot-Inspired Art
Each tarot card tells a story. By looking at a spread, you can weave together the individual narratives of the cards into a visual tale.
For example, imagine drawing a three-card spread:
The Lovers could represent a choice, connection, or union.
The Tower might indicate a sudden upheaval or breakthrough.
The Star brings healing, hope, and guidance after hardship.
These three cards could serve as the foundation for an art piece. You could create a sequence of paintings, sculptures, or illustrations that follow the journey of a character or idea from love, through chaos, and into healing or you could simply create an abstract image encapsulating the energy of the story you weave from the three card spread.
Tarot card spreads like this can help you structure stories, set up emotional arcs, and explore universal themes such as love, loss, transformation, and renewal.
5. Personal Growth Through Tarot Art
One of the most powerful ways to use tarot cards in your artistic practice is through self-reflection. Each tarot card has its own message that can be used for personal growth, and this can be explored in a powerful way, for example:
Strength could inspire a piece about inner power and courage.
The Hanged Man might encourage you to depict a moment of surrender, transformation, or letting go.
Death can represent rebirth and endings leading to new beginnings.
By allowing yourself to be guided by the wisdom of the tarot, you can create art that reflects your personal journey, growth, and emotions.
This process of turning your inner experiences into tangible artwork can be both healing and empowering, as it not only helps you understand inner world and gain new insights, it does that for the person who views (or buys) your art.
6. Combining Tarot and Mixed Media Art
If you enjoy mixed media, tarot cards can provide an exciting foundation for combining different art forms. Try incorporating tarot card images, symbols, and text into your work, blending collage, painting, drawing, and other mediums. You could create a series of pieces that reflect a different card each time, layering materials like fabric, crystals, and paint to create themes of each card.
Using tarot as a tool for artistic inspiration opens up countless creative possibilities. Whether you’re drawing inspiration from the symbolism, colours, archetypes, or personal reflections that tarot evokes, the process of combining art and divination can be both transformative and liberating.
So next time you feel stuck or in need of creative guidance, try pulling a card (or three) and let the energy of the tarot guide you. With each card, you can uncover new layers of creativity and connect with your higher yourself. Beats staring at a blank canvas any day!
Happy creating!
Are you a Moon Lover?
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