Clothespin Tarot, 2007
Concept, design, text and illustrations by Catya Plate
10 1/8 x 9 5/8 x 1 7/16 inches
2 ½ pounds
Edition of 50
Signed and numbered by the artist
ISBN-13: 978-0-9795015-0-0
Slip Case
Book board slip case, 10 1/8 x 9 5/8 x 1 7/16 inches, in blue Canapetta linen book cloth with three compartments; lined with Coated Interleaving paper printed with artist’s “clothespin” design using an Epson Inkjet Printer and Epson Inks.
Card Tray
Book board tray, 9 7/8 x 3 ¼ x 1 inches, in Asahi Soft Blue/Gold book cloth, lined with Coated Interleaving paper printed with “clothespin” design; two compartments housing 78 cards; fronts and backs of cards are printed on Index Exact cardstock paper using an Epson Inkjet Printer and Epson Inks; the card backs have the same “clothespin” design as the slip case lining; fronts and backs of the cards are bound together with Gudy archival glue; a small embroidered “Clothespin Freak” appliqué is attached to the front of the card tray; a hand sewn Asahi Soft Blue/Gold book cloth band, 1 inch wide, attached to one side of the tray, folds over it closing with Velcro on the other side to keep the cards in place while sliding out the tray.
Book
Hard cover in Asahi Soft Blue/Gold book cloth, 8 ¾ x 5 ¾ x 1 inches; orange ribbon page marker with small button sewn onto it; end sheets printed with “clothespin” design on Canson Ingres acid-free paper using an Epson Inkjet Printer and Epson Inks; embroidered letters and “Clothespin Freak” appliqué attached to book cover and spine; protective Mylar dust jacket; 11 hand-stitched signatures with head band; text (Georgia font) and 79 color reproductions of the artist’s original drawings printed, one-sided, on 87 pages on Somerset Book Wove, acid-free paper using an Epson Inkjet Printer and Epson Inks.
Clothespin Freak Figure
Original “Clothespin Freak” figure, 5 x 1 ½ x 1 inches (sitting), housing in the slip case behind the book; figure has movable parts and consists of custom-made clear, plastic clothespins, doll's body parts and sewn pieces; signed and dated.
A quote from the preface:
“The text accompanying each of the 78 drawings is an exercise in art interpretation arranged in three parts. The first part is simply a description of the corresponding picture. The remaining two parts are the interpretation for normal and inverted orientation of the image, delivered to the reader by the whimsical, often two-headed Clothespin Freaks. After all, two heads are better than one. Their serio-comic advice, colored by wordplay, double entendres and idiomatic expressions, is influenced by cultural, psychological and other references to produce open-ended, amusing and thought-provoking allegories.”
A quote from the text (Hanged):
“By no means intentional, your unconventional personality cannot help but march to the beat of a different drummer. Strongly adhering to your very own hanging instructions you do not give a hang to what most people do or think.”