Canadian artist Frank Lawrence has created a tarot deck with a difference: all the cards feature sex toys and BDSM accessories as classic tarot archetypes. Nearly 300 pleasure products from over 100 different product manufacturers and creators have been included in the 90-card Vibrating Tarot collection. Companies represented include CB-X Chastity, COTR, Crystal Delights Glass, Hismith, Motorbunny, Vibratex, and XR Brands.
“Vibrating Tarot is a fun and innovative way to showcase the link between pleasure and presence, and we’re excited to see the Magic Wand featured so prominently,” said Ken Herskovitz, CEO of Vibratex.
Lawrence, who is also a typographer and owner of Pallor Publishing graphic design consultancy, began the project in February 2020 and the majority of the deck has now been completed: “Vibrating Tarot celebrates the diversity of independent artists and pleasure-centric businesses of all sizes,” he said. “The goal is to create a tarot deck that draws a meaningful connection between the products and their corresponding card. Significance behind the artwork is everything within the tarot, and this deck is no exception. I extend immense gratitude to those who have supported this project.”
Products were selected based on a set of core values, including body-safe manufacturing, LGBTQ+ inclusivity, and a kink-positive ethos. Product functionality, shape, material, and colours were also chief decision makers.
Lawrence is currently finalising the artwork and collecting signed licensing agreements that will enable a crowdfunding campaign in May 2024, facilitating the production and distribution of the project’s first edition.
COTR founder and CEO Alicia Sinclair Rosen enthused “It’s very cool to see this project evolve—and so wonderful to know that we are a big part of it.”
The artwork is reimagined on the backgrounds of Pamela Colman Smith’s original 1909 black and white tarot illustrations, which became public domain in 2022.
Additional components to the project include a colouring book, and fundraising for charitable donations through silent auctions of original artwork. To learn more about the project, visit vibratingtarot.com, join the Vibrating Tarot mailing list here for crowdfunding updates, or contact vibratingtarot@gmail.com for all other enquiries.
