Hiker

Professionally framed Intaglio Print. Hiker is from a series of prints, depicting a nude figure with a large backpack on their back. Their hand is half outstretched, palm open. A little globe of Earth hovers above their hand. In some variations of the prints, a rectangular playing card shape outlines their palm. The card is based on the Ryder-Waite tarot deck illustrated by Pamela Colman Smith. This is a reinterpretation of the card “Strength” from the seventh Major Arcana card. In the original deck, a women is holding a lions mouth closed. In this rendition, there is only a lion, looking up at the earth. The word “Strength” is replaced on the bottom of the card with the word “Mars” which references the god of war in Roman myth. Some variations of the image are printed with a Collagraph plate created from material collected off the floor with a dustpan introducing a layer of dense green. An interpretation of Hiker could be the vulnerability of Earth in an era full of climate change fear and global water wars. The hiker in this image has taken on the burden of human actions and consequences on their shoulders, represented by the large backpack. They are stepping forward to take responsibility in response to the cards they have inherited.