World Debut: Five of Wands (Patreon)

The Story:

Featuring the absolutely wonderful Tamira Burns, a local LGBTQIA+ advocate in the Phoenix area, and a fan of my artwork. Earlier this year she was chosen for the Tarot project, but a couple weeks before her session, she became very sick with COVID-19.

It was a difficult journey, but I'm happy to report that she has recovered, and was able to become the Five of Wands just recently! As you can imagine, I had to also go on a mental journey with this body painting. My craft is a pretty intimate experience (now with masks)!

Hearing about her difficult journey was illuminating, and we found several topics to connect on.  I enjoyed creating art with Tamira, and the next photo is particularly cute! :D

Card Meaning

The five of Pentacles can represent conflict, tension, and disagreement. It can also represent friendly competition, but it generally illustrates an opportunity to grow from a upcoming challenge.

The Rider-Waite version focuses on a number of people fighting with their enormous...wands? Are those what wands looked like back then? That walking stick certainly saw an upgrade if it can also shoot fire balls!

I thought about casting five people to re-enact this wand fight, but I didn't want to take Helix's gig, so I thought I'd explore the artwork on someone instead. 

From what I understand, the fives from all elements represent serious unbalance. For the Five of Pentacles, it may mean a choke hold on business, Five of Swords may be harmful to physical and mental health. Five of Cups could bring sadness as relationships dissolve. The Five of Wands focuses on quarrelling energies, which we've seen plenty of lately!

For Tamira, I opted to paint the wands on her chest, in a beautiful pattern.  Her focus is firmly toward the future, despite the conflict that  rages inside of her.  Even if it's difficult, she will find a way to make everything work, and grow in the process. A light in the storm.    
We could all use a little light these days. <3 Thanks for your support! Hope you enjoyed this feature. 

Love and Art,
Brandon