The Deck of Cards

Alan Driscoll

This fascinating deck is the brainchild of Alan Driscoll, who produced it in 1979. In addition to the artwork, the deck contains a short descriptive insert, a list of each artist sorted by card, and a list of galleries where the artists' work can be seen. Perhaps the deck speaks best for itself. The descriptive insert:

THE DECK OF CARDS
Fifty-six contemporary British artists have been especially commissioned to contribute to this unique interpretation of a pack of playing cards. Each cards represents the original work of a different artist, together with additional designs for the reverse and for the box. The cards have been printed on Superluxe board and have been produced in the traditional Old English size.
Although some of the artists are better knon than others, all have examples of their work in public collections in Britain or aborad. A list of the contributors involved and details of where their work can be seen in presented below. Numbers alongside each collection relate to the numbered alphabetical list of artists' names that follows.

From the abstract to the surrealist to the representative, this deck represents a fairly wide variety of modern art forms, media and technique. In the works depicted in this deck you'll find portraiture, pure color studies, primitive work almost cartoonish in its aesthetic, even photography, retouched and pure, and more. Most every modern school can be found here. And there is no lack of visual puns. Each of the artists represented here took their own particular inspiration from the card they were given in a strange and unique direction. No two paintings are more than superficially alike, and they are worth studying together as much as they are worth studying separately. In their similarities you can find the soul of playing cards, and in their differences you can find the soul of the artists.

The box design is by Tim Whitmore, the back design is by Kenneth Martin, and the joker is by either Anthony Green or Anthony Donaldson (it's not clear from the documentation).

Four of Spades Anthony Benjamin	Queen of Diamonds David Inshaw
Seven of Clubs John Spence	Three of Hearts John Hoyland

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