We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Jennifer Steidley a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Jennifer, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. What’s been the most meaningful project you’ve worked on?

I recently designed and self-published my first Tarot Deck, called Tarot Disassembled. Tarot has been a lifelong hobby and interest for me, so being able to create my own deck and see it brought to life in print has been an absolute dream come true. To back up a bit, I have always been fascinated by the language of symbols. That is what drew me to my career in graphic design as well as sparked my fascination with Tarot when I discovered my first deck in college.

Tarot itself has a long, complex and somewhat mysterious history that can be traced back to the 1400s in Italy, but its legacy may extend farther back than that. In 1910, the Rider Waite Smith Tarot Deck (the Tarot deck that is most engrained in pop culture and that many of us are familiar with due to numerous appearances in movies, television and such) was first published. The rich imagery and symbolism woven into the Rider Waite Smith Tarot was influenced by Kabbalah, Freemasonry, Alchemy, Christian and Jewish mysticism and spiritual antiquity (to name a few).

I first had the idea for Tarot Disassembled while watching my now 10 year old son deconstruct yet another meal I made for him. In my world, I am surrounded by disassemblers. My husband and son can often be found prying open an old laptop, toaster or some other lost cause appliance to methodically disassemble the inner parts in order to better understand how it works. On this particular day, I watched my son methodically separate a turkey sandwich into all of its separate components and had a lightbulb moment. I wondered what could be learned from deconstructing the individual symbols found in the system of Tarot. And this passion project was born.

I spent the next half a year furiously researching the symbolism found in Tarot and designing a new deck that breaks out individual symbols into a fresh, colorful design. I even left out human depictions which allows the user of the deck to connect with the symbols in a completely intuitive way free from any pictorial narrative around gender, skin color, age, size, ability or any other human constructs.

In August of 2021, I ran a month long Kickstarter in hopes of funding the printing of a small run of decks. The response was overwhelming and exceeded my greatest hopes for the project. The Kickstarter campaign was fully funded in 6 hours and by the end of the 30 days, 879 backers had pledged to help bring the deck to life. I can’t even begin to tell you the gratitude I have for that experience!

In addition to designing the deck, I also wrote a guidebook to accompany it that breaks down the individual symbols and the stories they tell. I am a Designer and Artist by profession, but writing has never been more than a personal hobby for me before this project. It was a wonderful opportunity for me to grow creatively and explore another side of myself as a creator.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers

I have worked professionally as a graphic designer for over 20 years, both for corporations and as an independent. While that work has been very rewarding and enjoyable for me (and I still maintain a small graphic design practice today), it was becoming harder to ignore the little inner nudges that kept pushing me towards creating my own projects. In 2019, I lost a bread and butter client that I had worked for for over a decade. Initially it felt like a devastating blow, but I quickly realized that this was exactly the opening I needed to put time towards the things I wanted to create. I established Ferocious Ink that same year and got to work designing some of the ideas that had been floating around in my head for some time. The idea that was nudging the hardest ended up being my first card deck.

I have always been drawn to all types of metaphysical topics, and card decks such as Tarot and oracle cards have held a special fascination for me. I began collecting decks while I was in college. For me, they are the perfect intersection between art and the metaphysical world. They are also incredible tools for self-growth. With my love of decks, I suppose it was a natural first step for me to dive right in to creating a card deck.

I designed and self-published Botanic Whispers in 2019, a card deck inspired by plant essences that includes an affirmation on each card. Once Botanic Whispers began making it out into the world, I began receiving feedback that many found the cards and affirmations empowering and a helpful self-growth tool. After that, I was hooked. To know that something I created is a positive part of someone’s day is an amazing feeling. I followed that deck with a playful, Chakra themed deck with somewhat cheeky (though no less empowering) affirmations. And now, I have just finished my first Tarot deck, Tarot Disassembled.

One of the things that I believe is unique about my work is that I don’t feel I have a particular style. I start with a core idea and then chase that idea to see where it leads and what it wants to become. I’ve discovered a niche that I am passionate about in deck design and while all of my decks are distinctly different in style and aesthetic, the core consistency between them all is that they strive to bring empowerment and positivity to those who use them.

What can society do to ensure an environment that’s helpful to artists and creatives?

I believe in this day and age of social media and online presence, one of the best ways to support creatives is to share their work and engage with them. If you love an artist’s work, share it so others can discover them. Rave about them to your friends. It’s not always easy for an artist to share their work and put themselves out there. It requires a tad more vulnerability than other professions. When they do and their work resonates with you, tell them so. Engage, comment, and let them know when their work inspires. When possible, support creatives with the almighty dollar. Buy gifts from independent creators rather than just large chain stores. For an artist to be able to sustain themselves financially while creating from a place of passion is a gift… not just for them but for society as a whole.

Are there any resources you wish you knew about earlier in your creative journey?

I can’t say enough good things about Kickstarter as a tool for creatives. As someone who has backed many projects on Kickstarter (as well as run a successful campaign of my own), I’ve seen some truly amazing creative projects become a reality that otherwise may have never seen the light of day simply because of lack of funding. There is something really magical that happens when art is funded by the power of community.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.ferociousink.com
• Instagram: @ferociousink

Image Credits
Brandi Graham