Pamela Colman-Smith: artist, occultist, true bohemian. Her illustrations defined the iconography of the classic tarot deck, but she is all too often forgotten.
Born in London in 1878, Colman-Smith moved to Jamaica with her parents at the age of eleven and then to New York to study art. She dropped out of college following her mother's death in 1896, and after her father died in 1899 she found herself back in London, joining the infamous Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, a secret society dedicated to the study of occultism. It was there that she met Arthur Edward Waite, with whom she created the classic Rider-Waite tarot deck that is still in print today.
This beautifully illustrated graphic history tells Colman-Smith's tale and relates it to the iconic cards she helped to create, from the Fool, the beginning of every new adventure, to the Magician, who focusses energy, to the Hanged Man, who helps us see things from a different angle, until finally we embrace the World and fulfil our destinies.
A unique take on a perennially popular subject, you'll never look at a tarot deck in the same way again.
By:
Valentina Grande
Imprint: Leaping Hare Press
Country of Publication: United Kingdom
Dimensions:
Height: 230mm,
Width: 170mm,
Weight: 750g
ISBN: 9781836002734
ISBN 10: 1836002734
Series: Graphic MBS
Pages: 128
Publication Date: 26 August 2025
Audience:
General/trade
,
ELT Advanced
Format: Hardback
Publisher's Status: Active
PROLOGUE: William Butler Yeats, Ego dominos tuus CHAPTER 1: Pamela does a reading for Beth, who is anxious about not being able to have children. Pamela also teaches her friends about the tarot deck, and shares how she joined The Golden Dawn and met John Waite. CHAPTER 2: Pamela does a reading for Nora, who is frustrated at not being recognized as an artist. Pamela recalls her travels to the United States and Jamaica, and explains more about her work on the tarot illustrations and the history of tarot. CHAPTER 3: Pamela and Isabel reminisce about how they met at a meeting of the suffragist movement. Pamela talks about the Suffrage Atelier that was responsible for illustrating posters in support of the political struggle, and explains the Major Arcana and The Journey of the Fool. CHAPTER 4: Pamela does a reading for Isabel, who is worried about being lonely and wonders if she should find a husband. Pamela tells her friends about her relationships with Yeats, Stoker and Edy Craig, as well as the court cards in the tarot deck. CHAPTER 5: Pamela does a reading for her own future. The cards indicate a spiritual quest that will continue, and we learn about the principle of synchronicity on which tarot works. EPILOGUE: The four women go to the beach at dawn; thanks to the cards, they understand themselves better and are ready for a new beginning.
Valentina Grande is a teacher and scriptwriter. She is also a radio conductor of literary programs such as: Simply Salinger, and 42 La risposta, broadcast on Radio Onda d'Urto and Radio CittàFujiko. She is the accomplished author of the 2018 publications Il mio Salinger (later translated into French) and Raymond Carver, una storia. In 2020 she published the book Feminist Art (also published in Germany, USA, Great Britain, Spain, France and Korea). In 2021 she published Bauhaus, l'idea che ha cambiato il mondo. This book was also published in France, Germany, UK and USA. Her most recent work is on Gertrude Stein and the Lost Generation: Gertrude Stein e la generazione perduta, first published in France (subsequently translated into Italian and then published also in Germany and Spain). In April 2025 her new book titled Les nageuses de minuit will be published in France and Belgium. Valentina Grande lives and works in Bologna (Italy).
Reviews for Tarot: A Graphic History: Pamela Colman Smith's story of arcana, symbols & magic
""From the Fool, the beginning of every new adventure, to the Magician, who focusses energy, to the Hanged Man, who helps us see things from a different perspective, until finally we embrace the World and fulfil our destinies, Tarot: A Graphic History offers a unique, informative, and original 'graphic novel' style approach to the study of the tarot and the biography of one of the most influential practitioners of the late 19th Century."" * Midwest Book Review *
