Robert M. Place (born 1947) is an American artist and writer known for his work on

Tarot Tarot (, first known as ''trionfi (cards), trionfi'' and later as ''tarocchi'' or ''tarocks'') is a set of playing cards used in tarot games and in fortune-telling or divination. From at least the mid-15th century, the tarot was used to play t ...

history, symbolism, and

divination Divination () is the attempt to gain insight into a question or situation by way of an occultic ritual or practice. Using various methods throughout history, diviners ascertain their interpretations of how a should proceed by reading signs, ...

Work as an artist

Place has worked since the 1970s as a sculptor, jeweler and illustrator. His sculpture has been exhibited on the

White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue Northwest (Washington, D.C.), NW in Washington, D.C., it has served as the residence of every U.S. president ...

Christmas tree, in the

New York State Museum The New York State Museum is a research-backed institution in Albany, New York, Albany, New York (state), New York, United States. It is located on Madison Avenue, attached to the south side of the Empire State Plaza, facing onto the plaza and to ...

, the

Delaware Art Museum The Delaware Art Museum is an art museum located on the Kentmere Parkway in Wilmington, Delaware, which holds a collection of more than 12,000 objects. The museum was founded in 1912 as the Wilmington Society of the Fine Arts in honor of the arti ...

, and the Irish American Heritage Museum. Place’s jewelry has been exhibited in the

American Craft Museum The Museum of Arts and Design (MAD), based in Manhattan, New York City, collects, displays, and interprets objects that document contemporary and historic innovation in craft, art, and design. In its exhibitions and educational programs, the ...

, the

Philadelphia Museum of Art The Philadelphia Museum of Art (PMA) is an List of art museums#North America, art museum originally chartered in 1876 for the Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia. The main museum building was completed in 1928 on Fairmount, a hill located at ...

, the

Montclair Art Museum The Montclair Art Museum (MAM) is located in Montclair in Essex County, New Jersey and holds a collection of over 12,000 objects showcasing American and Native North American art. Through its public programs, art classes, and exhibitions, MAM ...

, the Summit Art Center, the International Wilhelm Muller Competition (which toured museums in Germany), the

Birmingham Institute of Art and Design Birmingham City University (abbrev. BCU) is a university in Birmingham, England. Initially established as the Birmingham College of Art with roots dating back to 1843, it was designated as a polytechnic in 1971 and gained university status in ...

, and in numerous galleries in the United States, Ireland, Britain, and Japan. He was awarded a 1984-85 New Jersey State Council on the Arts Fellowship and the

Niche Magazine Niche may refer to: Science *Developmental niche, a concept for understanding the cultural context of child development and growth *Ecological niche, a term describing the relational position of an organism's species *Niche differentiation, in ec ...

award for outstanding achievement in metal sculpture in 1990 and 1991.

Work as tarot designer and author

In the 1990s, Place turned his attention as an illustrator to the creation of tarot decks and began his career as an author. Place is best known as the creator of ''The Alchemical Tarot'', his first deck and book combination, which is illustrated in the style of 17th century alchemical engravings and which presents a parallel between the “great work” of

alchemy Alchemy (from the Arabic word , ) is an ancient branch of natural philosophy, a philosophical and protoscientific tradition that was historically practised in China, India, the Muslim world, and Europe. In its Western form, alchemy is first ...

, which leads to the creation of the

philosopher’s stone The philosopher's stone is a mythic alchemical substance capable of turning base metals such as mercury into gold or silver; it was also known as "the tincture" and "the powder". Alchemists additionally believed that it could be used to mak ...

and the allegory in the tarot’s trumps. In his other decks, ''The Angels Tarot, The Tarot of the Saints'', and ''The Buddha Tarot'', Place has explored the connection between religion,

mysticism Mysticism is popularly known as becoming one with God or the Absolute (philosophy), Absolute, but may refer to any kind of Religious ecstasy, ecstasy or altered state of consciousness which is given a religious or Spirituality, spiritual meani ...

, and the tarot’s symbolism. In his fifth book, ''The Tarot: History, Symbolism, and Divination'', his first book published not in connection with a tarot deck, Place contributed to the field of tarot history by discussing the images in the tarot in relation to the iconography of the 15th century

Italian Renaissance The Italian Renaissance ( ) was a period in History of Italy, Italian history between the 14th and 16th centuries. The period is known for the initial development of the broader Renaissance culture that spread across Western Europe and marked t ...

, the era when the tarot was created. Place relates each image in the tarot to similar images created at that time and presents a theory of interpretation that is rooted in the art and philosophy of the time. The book also discusses contrasting occult theories and champions

Pamela Colman Smith Pamela Colman Smith (16 February 1878 – 16 September 1951), nicknamed "Pixie", was a British artist, illustrator, writer, publisher, and occultist. She is best-known for illustrating the Rider–Waite Tarot (also known as the Rider–Waite– ...

as the primary designer of the Waite–Smith tarot. The Tarotpedia has said that ''The Tarot: History, Symbolism, and Divination'' “is bound to find a place amongst the most important works published this decade.” "

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", the publication of the

American Library Association The American Library Association (ALA) is a nonprofit organization based in the United States that promotes libraries and library education internationally. It is the oldest and largest library association in the world. History 19th century ...

, has said that ''The Tarot: History, Symbolism, and Divination'' “may be the best book ever written on that deck of cards decorated with mysterious images called the tarot.” Robert Place has been a frequent lecturer and teacher of Western mysticism and the history and use of the tarot. Besides teaching regularly at the New York Open Center since 1996 and at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York since 2009, he has taught at the World Tarot Congress, in Chicago and in Dallas; the Southeast Tarot Congress, in Florida; the New York Reader's Studio; The Third International Conference of the Association for Esoteric Studies, in Charleston; The

Omega Institute Omega Institute for Holistic Studies is a non-profit educational Retreat (spiritual), retreat center located in Rhinebeck, New York. Founded in 1977 by Elizabeth Lesser and Stephan Rechtschaffen, inspired by Sufi mystic, Pir Vilayat Inayat ...

, in New York; The

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; Columbia University; The Museo Dei Tarocchi, in Riola, Italy; The Tarot Guild of Australia, Melbourne; Cartomancia, in Sao Paulo, Brazil; and he has given workshops in Los Angeles, Salt Lake City, Las Vegas; and since 2017, in Beijing, Shanghai, and Hangzhou, China. In 2023, he was the main presenter at the International Deck and Tarot Congress in Toledo, Spain. His lectures have appeared on the

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

, the

Learning Channel TLC is an American multinational cable and satellite television network owned by the Networks division of Warner Bros. Discovery. First established in 1980 as The Learning Channel, it initially focused on educational and instructional progra ...

Discovery Discovery may refer to: * Discovery (observation), observing or finding something unknown * Discovery (fiction), a character's learning something unknown * Discovery (law), a process in courts of law relating to evidence Discovery, The Discovery ...

, and A&E. In July, 2007, Place had the honor of cutting the ribbon at the grand opening of the Museo dei Tarocchi, in Riola, Italy. Place was also the curator of an exhibition on the art and history of the tarot, which was held at the Los Angeles

Craft and Folk Art Museum Craft Contemporary, formerly the Craft and Folk Art Museum, is a non-profit, non-collecting arts museum dedicated to showcasing contemporary craft in Los Angeles, California. The museum is located on Los Angeles' Museum Row on Wilshire Boulevard, ...

, from January 23, 2010, to May 9, 2010 and is the subject of his book, ''The Fool's Journey: the History, Art, & Symbolism of the Tarot''. His facsimile of one of the earliest Italian Renaissance woodcut Tarots is included in the

Metropolitan Museum of Art The Metropolitan Museum of Art, colloquially referred to as the Met, is an Encyclopedic museum, encyclopedic art museum in New York City. By floor area, it is the List of largest museums, third-largest museum in the world and the List of larg ...

in New York.

Tarot and divination decks

*''The Alchemical Tarot Reimagined'', *''The First Occult Tarot: The Deck Envisioned by Louis-Raphael-Lucrece de Fayolle, comte de Mellet in 1781'', *''The Alchemical Tarot: Renewed 6th Edition-The Blue Sky Edition'', *''The Alchemical Tarot of Marseille'', *''The Tarot of the Sevenfold Mystery 2nd Edition'', *''The Alchemical Tarot: Renewed 5th Edition'', *''The Tarot of the Alchemical Magnum Opus,'' *''An Ukiyo-e Lenormand'', *''The Raziel Tarot: the Secret Teachings of Adam and Eve'', * ''The Marziano Tarot'', * ''The Hermes Playing Card Oracle'', * ''The New York Lenormand'' * ''The Burning Serpent Oracle'', * ''Facsimile Italian Renaissance Woodcut Tarocchi'' * ''The Tarot of the Sevenfold Mystery'', * ''The Annotated Tarot of the Sevenfold Mystery'', * ''The Vampire Tarot'', * ''The Buddha Tarot'', * ''The Tarot of the Saints'', * ''The Angels Tarot'' * ''The Alchemical Tarot: Renewed, Editions 2, 3, and 4'', * ''The Alchemical Tarot: Art Edition'' * ''The Alchemical Tarot'',

Books

* The First Occult Tarot, As Envisioned by Louis-Rapharl-Lucrece de Fayolle, comte de Mellet in 1781, 2023 * The Tarot, Magic, Alchemy, Hermeticism, and Neoplatonism, Third Edition 2021, * The Tarot, Magic, Alchemy, Hermeticism, and Neoplatonism, Second Edition 2019, *''Alchemy and the Tarot: An Examination of the Historic Connection between Alchemy and the Tarot, with a Guide to The Alchemical Tarot'', 2011, * ''The Fool's Journey: the History, Art, & Symbolism of the Tarot'', 2010, * ''Mysteries, Legends, and Unexplained Phenomena Series: Magic and Alchemy'', 2009, * ''The Vampire Tarot'', 2009, * ''Mysteries, Legends, and Unexplained Phenomena Series: Shamanism'', 2008, * ''Mysteries, Legends, and Unexplained Phenomena Series: Astrology and Divination'', 2008, * ''The Tarot: History, Symbolism, and Divination'', 2005, * ''The Buddha Tarot Companion: A Mandala of Cards'', 2004, * ''A Gnostic Book of Saints'', 2001, * ''The Angels Tarot'', coauthored with

Rosemary Ellen Guiley Rosemary Ellen Guiley (July 8, 1950 - July 18, 2019) was an American writer on topics related to spirituality, the occult, and the paranormal. She was also a radio show host, a certified hypnotist, a board director of the "National Museum of My ...

, 1995, * ''The Alchemical Tarot'', coauthored with

, 1995,

References

External links

*
The Museo dei Tarocchi – Italy
Robert M. Place's workshop {{DEFAULTSORT:Place, Robert M. Living people Alchemy American illustrators American non-fiction writers People associated with tarot 1947 births Date of birth missing (living people) Place of birth missing (living people)