ARCANE TAROT
Tarot Consultation & Occult Art by James Blandford
Welcome to Arcane Tarot, the website of James R. Blandford. I am a Tarot reader and internationally published author and artist based in Brighton on the South Coast of England.
With over four decades experience of working with the Tarot under my belt I have created a number of my own decks over the years, the latest of which – the 78 card ‘Wyrd Tarot' - I self published in 2023 with two of the images slated for publication in works from renowned occult publisher Three Hands Press.
I hope you will enjoy the site.
Welcome To Arcane Tarot
You may find my claim to have 40 years of Tarot experience preposterous but it’s very much true. I first came across the Tarot at the age of five, thanks to friends of the family who owned a book on the subject - Brian Innes' "The Tarot". I was fascinated by the images and for the next two years I pestered my parents for a deck of my own. Initially reluctant to encourage such an outlandish interest, they eventually relented and at Christmas 1982 I was given a deck of my own, the 22 Trump set published by US Games Systems as 'Tarot Starter'.
This was the genesis of a lifelong passion for the Tarot which has seen the recent completion of my own Tarot deck - the ‘Wyrd Tarot’ - alongside almost two decades of fulltime professional reading at the time of writing.
My Story
A number of childhood experiences combined with family visits to Cornwall’s Museum Of Witchcraft to cement a firm interest in the 'Occult' (or 'Hidden'). At school I corresponded with well known Wiccan authors including the Farrars and Maxine Sanders and would read the cards for the school cleaning ladies, much to the displeasure of the chaplain who was prompted to carry out a half-baked unorthodox 'exorcism' of my study. I created my first pieces of magical art at this time - including a copper Wiccan altar pentacle acid-etched with the help of the of CDT teacher - and started creating talismans.
In 1994, while studying at the University of York, I co-founded the Occult Society with a member of the OTO and read the Tarot at University Events. I had my first taste of reading at Psychic Fairs thanks to an acquaintanceship with Ben Fernee (the well-respected proprietor of Caduceus Books and Director of the SOEE). I quickly gained a reputation for accuracy and honesty - it wasn't unusual for students to knock on my door in the small hours in search of a reading.
Museum Of Witchcraft
At the same time I studied with a coven of Witches based in Sheffield and was lucky enough to spend time with Patricia Crowther, a wonderful lady regarded by many as Gerald Gardner's spiritual heir. She has one of my Occult artworks hanging in her home and was among the first to encourage me to create my own Tarot deck after seeing some of the Trumps I drew while at University. I was impressed by her kindness and disciplined approach to the Craft and remain spiritually indebted to her to this day.
From 1998 to 2006 I worked as a music journalist, authoring biographies of Britney Spears (Omnibus Press 2002, also translated into German) and PJ Harvey (Siren Rising - Omnibus Press 2004). The latter received positive reviews from Q. Mojo & Uncut magazines in the UK and went through two hardback print runs before re-release as an expanded paperback in 2006. It was translated into French (as Le Chant De La Sirene) and Russian (!).
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Contributing to Attitude, Mojo, Record Collector and Rockstar (Italy) magazines, I interviewed a panoply of artists including Tori Amos, Marilyn Manson, Alison Goldfrapp, Boy George, Keith Flint, Placebo, Rockbitch and Cradle of Filth. I appeared on BBC Radio twice and Channel 5. Although my occult interests took a back seat at this time, they were often evident in my writing and my articles included one on Alex Sanders’ infamous ‘Witch Is Born’ LP and another on Kenneth Anger’s fascination with Aleister Crowley.
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This history of esoteric study has expanded my relationship with the Tarot though I balance this with a historically-informed and rational approach to the subject which proved popular when I joined kooma - then Psychic Switchboard - in 2006. When I left to go solo in 2013 I was one of only a handful of readers who maintained a 5 star rating. In 2017 I self-published a limited run of my own 22 Tarot Trumps - the Arcane Tarot – paving the way for the launch of my own 78 card deck – the Wyrd Tarot – in 2023.
It has long been my belief that, contrary to popular opinion, one can indeed approach the Occult with a scientific mind - as Crowley put it: "The aim of religion, the method of science". This approach to the Tarot has proven helpful to many of my clients and I hope it may help you too.
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