Published by Quo Vadis, Author’s website: http://www.philippe-rouchier.com/
‘The Arcanas of the Star’ Tarot card pack contains colour
artwork designs of the Major tarot concepts. The
figurative images are ultra modern and highly stylised and many carry an
interesting gender and conceptual ambiguity which allows deep expression of the
imagination and intuition. The cards have black backs with a yellow central
circle within a geometric design of a star. The pack also contains a 42 page explanatory booklet written in both French and English of traditional upright card concepts. The card sequence is non-standard, card 8 is Justice and card 11 is Strength. There is a suggested spread of ten cards and questions are provided to assist the reader. I used this ten card suggested spread for a simplified and personal interpretation.
Philippe Rouchier is an artistic director and designer for cinema and TV and is a published novelist. He specialises in producing elegant images. This is his third major arcana tarot deck, ‘Eye of Myrrdin’ and ‘The Tarot of the Storm’ being previous major arcana decks. Philippe Rouchier says of the tarot “For me, the answers to our questions are not somewhere else, but in ourselves. And the tarot is a tool to help us to understand ourselves.”
My first impression is that this slim-line deck (6cm x 10cm) is that it would be a suitable gift for a young male interested in games of chance and something to provide a talking point. The pack bears a reproduction of the card of The Hermit, a man with a long white beard with backdrop of a starlight night who gazes into the distance. His eyes are in shadow and he holds aloft a lantern lit with a small flame (perhaps a hurricane lamp).
From a well shuffled deck, I drew:
The first card which
depicts the central issue, where you are and of fundamental influence in your
present situation. The card number is 21, titled ‘The World’. it is depicted as
a strong, bare-chested man with long, flowing black hair and a white beard and
moustache. His eyes are hidden in shadow. He is holding in his hand a circle of
energy. The traditional meaning of ‘The World’ card is wholeness, success and
completion. My intuition leads me to think this means a new beginning is about
to take place and the shades need to be lifted from the eyes of the seeker in
order for wisdom to be available for the good use of the energy they hold in
their hands. 
The second card relates to the source of resistance and what needs to be changed. Number 7 ‘The Chariot’ is chosen and is depicted as a serious young woman with long black hair, her neck is protected by armour. ‘The Chariot’ denotes the seeker will progress and find success, but the wearing of armour suggests her work might dangerous, so levels of safety are a major consideration especially as the staff she is carrying has one dead shoot and one small green shoot which curls into a scroll. At this point, the new project could go either way depending on the level of safety undertaken.
The
third card chosen is number 10. ‘Wheel of Fortune is illustrated by the image of
a young woman wearing a golden hood and cape covering a green and black dress.
She carries a wheel bearing a scroll, perhaps the wheel from the chariot in
which she rides. Is the wheel shielding her eyes from us or is she hiding behind
her means of success? This card represents the source of the problem, past
influences or a matter which is denied. Change is traditionally suggested by
this card. You need see your way ahead clearly before embarking on major
projects and evaluate what provides the the most valuable rewards. Philippe
Rouchier says of this card: “I wanted to show that whatever the direction in
which the wheel was rotated, the eyes of the character remain hidden. It means
that "Fortune" does not show favouritism and can smile at everybody. Reviewer: Wendy Stokes https://wendystokes.co.uk
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