Tarot and Art Forecast for Week of May 31, 2020

May 31, 2020 Nina

The artist this week is Selma Burke. Her pieces express an overall emotionality and truthfulness created from her interesting nuanced choices. Selma’s subject with a furrowed brow conveying the rawness of intention, or the curiosity of raised eyebrows, or the tilt of a child’s head expressing innocence. With her more experimental pieces like The Torso her choice of figure and tilt articulating a more realistic view of a women’s form, or the tenderness of a mother holding a child. This is a lesson in the subtleness of choice conveying powerful emotional content. Each of us effect change in our lives and maybe the more subtle, more nuanced may just have a more lasting a broader effect then we think.

She started her education by becoming a nurse in Raleigh, N.C. and moved to NYC after graduation. There she became associated with the Harlem Renaissance and began teaching art appreciation and education to New York youth. Then during the 1930’s she traveled across Europe honing her own artist skills. By 1940 she opened the Selma Burke School of Sculpture in NYC while graduating from Columbia with her own arts degree.

In 1942 she joined the Navy become one of the first African American women to enroll and worked in the shipyard during the war. During that time, she won a competition to do a bronze relief of FDR. Historically this is her most famous and controversial piece. Many say her piece was the inspiration for the dime; however, it is detested by the artist who designed it. She returned to roots and from 1968 to 1981 she founded and ran the Selma Burke Art Center in Pittsburgh, continuing to provide art to the youth of the undeserved communities there.

P.S. Signs with an * it a big week for you. Gemini this is a perfect time to get an Astrological Tarot Reading for your coming year. And Sagittarius it is your halfway mark for your birth year, so if you need a Planetary Reading for a check in now is the time.

May light be on you, around you, and within you,

Nina

Aries

Selma Burke Queen of Wands – This week the energy can invigorate anything you put your focus to. It also supplies you with the courage and fierceness to take charge of all that you survey. The challenge is doing it alone. It is not necessary, but you can if you must.

Taurus

PhotoCredit: John Wilson White

*World – The world is your oyster this week. But it is up to you prying it open to reveal its’ pearls. This is big energy for moving outcomes into triumphant directions. The challenge with this card for you Taurus is that you do have the work ethic and commitment to move things to completion. But are you flexible enough to know when to let it go if it isn’t working or allowing it to evolve into an unknown ending? To utilize this energy, go for the feeling of a job well done without attaching it to a material completion.

Gemini

PhotoCredit: John Wilson White

Two of Swords – Confusion flies through the lines of communication and thought. This causes stalemates and indecision not only for you but for those around you. The best way to work with this energy is either flipping a coin or waiting until next week to decide if you can.

Cancer

Selma Burke Eight of Swords – Self acceptance is key this week. You might be feeling entrapped, but this time is meant for healing. Sometimes the inertia of life has nothing to do with you as long as you don’t take it on as your story. Let go of the collective thought patterns. They are not part of your narrative.

Leo

Selma Burke Queen of Cups – Last week your brain was taxed. The energy takes a 180 degree turn to your heart this week. Compassion, calm and comfort are the keys to ease. Find time daily to invite in the 3 Cs. This is no time for martyrdom – take time off and have some fun.

Virgo

Ten of Wands – Another week spending energy in completing old projects and cleaning your desk/mind/spirit. The challenge is being responsible for your obligations to those close to you but also to yourself. This week is setting you up for new beginnings once your plate is cleared from the old.

Libra

Four of Swords – This energy shows up when you need to recuperate and relax. You are being drained and are not aware of the source or how much it is taking out of you. The best way of finding the leaks is by walking away from all your responsibilities for a small amount of time. Then once you return the seepage will be more obvious and easier to fix.

Scorpio

Selma Burke *Temperance – The energy that surrounds you this week is excessive. This overload unbalances you, so emotional outburst may be necessary to vent and re-calibrate. However, be careful, impatience can trigger more negative and unworthy outpourings. The key is purposely vent before the pressure makes you burst.

Sagittarius

*Sun – The sun will come out tomorrow and shine on you all week. So that is great if you are ready to play in the sunlight. However, there is a distinct possibility you may also want to hide in the shadows of pessimism. The challenge is that more you try to be happy the less you accomplish it. In other words, you are thinking to much. Sag your free spirit is needing airing, a drive in the car with windows down, a picnic in the woods, or anything outdoorsy without any goal setting is required. Try spotlighting your focus on things you want to do – not things you have to do.

Capricorn

*Justice – Last week organic change was asking you to not resist or fear transformation. Letting things end so others can begin. You are hopefully now moving with a more natural pace and to a more comfortable place. Luckily, you get another week to work on this shift by focusing on cause and effect. For each decision you are making imagine the possible or impossible outcomes. Why focus on the impossible? Because your mind wants to think of the what ifs and this is the week to let it. Those out-there worst-case scenarios need airing. Not to bring them in to being but to see the truth of their outlandishness.

Aquarius

Selma Burke *Chariot – Wow four weeks in a row with big energy. It started with summoning you to take a bit of control over your destiny by showing up. Then Temperance energy suggested creating your life like a refined meal that has many notes to balance in the creation of a delectable dining experience. Then Justice had you looking for the grey areas to find a true sense of fairness and harmony. Now self-determining change has arrived. This energy is giving you control. The good side is that you have more sway then you think. The bad side is it is all in your hands. This week if you want movement to happen you will need to take the reins. If you look at all of May/June’s forecast now is the time to be flexible and delicate when applying energy but continue moving forward.

Pisces

Selma Burke Two of Wands – Discovery is the name of the game this week. The challenge is that you are still in a place that is neither the past nor the future; however, you are not inert. You are just taking a moment finding needed items and planning for the move forward. The only challenge is while you are doing this be mindful of the precious moments this pause has given you.

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Tarot and Art Forecast for Week of May 24, 2020

May 24, 2020 Nina

Alice Ball

A tiny break from art into science, because we need a collective shout out to the scientists that work every day in creating cures for thousands of illnesses. Our society is relying on a variety of scientists around the world to understand and create a vaccine for Covid-19. Theories aside from how it was spread, we need researchers to develop a vaccine. Science, in general, needs to be supported now and women in particular need to be nurtured in science fields. Nothing in life is to be feared, it is only to be understood. Now is the time to understand more, so that we may fear less.― Marie Curie

Alice Ball was the chemist that developed the first successful treatment of Hansen’s disease (leprosy). She was also the first African American and woman to graduate with a M.S. degree in chemistry from the College of Hawaii. Her research in the early 1900’s with oil of the chaulmoogra tree lead her to create the first injectable leprosy treatment. The previous oral use of the oil caused many uncomfortable side effects and was less effective. Her method was so successful it allowed patients to rejoin their families free from the symptoms of leprosy. She died at age 24. She was not recognized for her work until 2000.

May light be on you, around you, and within you,

Nina

Aries

Eight of Cups– The energy this week is about walking away from things that are no longer useful. Your heart is telling you something is off, and it is time to take another avenue. But to figure out what that is sometimes you need to totally disengage from it. This isn’t about avoiding anything, it is about evaluating and simplifying.

Taurus

Nine of Coins – Abundance is in the air. You are going to need time to do some work this week, in solitude is best. Utilize this energy to materialize what you are wanting to grow in your physical plane. As they say energy goes where attention flows. So where or what are you driving to?

Gemini

Seven of Coins – The energy this week is aimless and spotted with areas of delay and inertia. To work with this, focus and persistence is vital. This is a nose to the grindstone kind of week. But as in the quote by John Firth implied do not holdeth their noses so hard to the grindstone, that it clean disfigureth their faces. The challenge is there is a line between work and being overwork. Be careful not to step over that line.

Cancer

Queen of Coins – The last two week’s energies were about healing being needed as much as action in creating a healthier future. Now the energy is about the balance between work and play, and for you this takes form in being the nurturer and being nurtured. Broaden your scope of independence to find places where you can nurture yourself.

Leo

King of Swords – You are going to need your brain this week. The challenge is using your intellect for long-term planning is more useful than getting all the details right. Yes, it is easier getting caught in the what ifs, but that will take you off course. So, discipline is key to taking advantage of this energy.

Virgo

Ten of Cups – Last week’s energy was calling you, to find ways to mother and not smother your creativity. It is natural for you to nurture others but when it comes to yourself you stop. You needed to loosen the structure and cultivate organic expression. Well that energy continues this week by helping you cultivate the joy you find in creation. Now is the time to be masterful and overlap that with your bliss.

Libra

Page of Coins – Learning and diligence are needed to use this week’s energy well. The challenge is allowing yourself to be wrong. You do not need to hold all the weight to get things done. Delegation and assistance are key, but you must let go of the idea that your way is the only way.

Scorpio

Ace of Wands – Distraction and delays are in the air for you this week which will lead you to hesitating or off your intended path. The key is keeping your eye on what inspires you. If you let inspiration be your guide you will follow a creative path of ease instead of willow wisps.

Sagittarius

Eight of Coins – It is easy to do your work this week as long as you stick to what you know. Use this week’s energy honing your skills. You do not need to learn more. You have mastered your craft now it is time to use it.

Capricorn

*Death – Change is in the air again. Do not resist or fear this transformation. Let things end so others can begin. This change is organic. There are ups & downs and starts & stops, but overall, this push forward has you moving in a more natural pace and to a more comfortable place.

Aquarius

*Justice – Another big energy week for you. Two weeks ago, it started with summoning you to take a bit of control over your destiny by showing up. Then the Temperance energy suggested creating your life like a refined meal that has many notes to balance its tastes into a delectable dining experience. This concept of balance continues this week but instead of the last week’s refinement, this week is more related to the balance that happens with causes and effects. The challenge is that every question is not yes or no look for the grey areas to find a true sense of fairness and harmony.

Pisces

Eight of Wands – Slow down you move to fast is your theme song this week. This week has tons of information coming at you and the feel of needing making quick decision, but to discern the information you will need to slow down and feel the flow. Use this week’s energy to swim with the current even though it may feel too slow.

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Tarot and Art Forecast for Week of May 17, 2020

May 17, 2020 Nina

Beth Cavener

This week’s art is the incredible sculptures of Beth Cavener. The exquisite lines of these sculptures are like Japanese calligraphy strokes in clay. The sculpting style feels loose in appearance but tight in emotion. In her own words: Primitive animal instincts lurk in our own depths, waiting for the chance to slide past a conscious moment. The sculptures I create focus on human psychology, stripped of context and rationalization, and articulated through animal and human forms. On the surface, these figures are simply feral and domestic individuals suspended in a moment of tension. Beneath the surface, they embody the consequences of human fear, apathy, aggression, and misunderstanding.

Many people are seeing their and others’ worse sides right now. Wanting to be free but fearful and aggressive in obtaining that freedom. We must try to calm our primal emotions of flight, fight, or freeze, and enhance our innate capacity for empathy and compassion. But to do that, we must face our underlying fears. We must stare at them even though uncomfortable, possible wrestle with them, but ultimately, if we are truthful with where they are rooted, they will not overcome us. And for others’ feelings, empathy is necessary, for they are as scared of something as you are.

Please check out her website especially check out her process. It is amazing!

P.S. Signs with an * it a big week for you. Taurus this is a perfect time to get an Astrological Tarot Reading for your coming year. And Scorpio it is your halfway mark for your birth year, so if you need a Planetary Reading for a check in now is the time.

May light be on you, around you, and within you,

Nina

Aries

Eight of Coins– This week is all about work. You got skills and you need to use them. So, now is the time to get things done. The challenge is being humble enough to know you always have something more to learn

Taurus

Two of Cups – It is all about partnerships this week. This time holds possibilities of unity and connection, but if emotions are not attended to, it can also hold tension and disharmony. Be aware it takes two to tango or waltz. One can lead but the other must agree to follow.

Gemini

beth cavener Ten of Cups – This week’s energy is around family bliss. Spend these coming days cultivating harmony and happiness. Find ways to enjoy the company of others, whether that is with a web wine meet up or a virtual game of cards. Companionship is key this week.

Cancer

Beth Cavener *Star – Last week’s energy is about bring the divine down into practical applications. Using your resourcefulness and skills to create action. Now the card of healing joins the mix. For last week’s energy was a mix bag of actions. This week you can step back and see why your creative fires did not light or burn as brightly as you intended. Do not be discouraged. This is part of the process of action you need to learn before your new birth year starts. Understanding and mending is needed as much as action to create a healthier future.

Leo

beth cavener Eight of Swords – Ok week two of moody thoughts and feelings surrounding you. The key to this week’s feeling of being trapped is again around self-acceptance. You are allowed to have feelings, but overthinking those feelings is where the trap gets triggered. Take this time to discern and disengage from the entwinement of your heart and your mind.

Virgo

*Empress – Creativity is calling to you. But something is holding you back. This week find out how to mother and not smother that creativity. It is natural for you to nurture others but when it comes to yourself you stop. Why? Let loose of the structure and cultivate organic expression.

Libra

Ace of Wands – Last week’s energy was about creating new beginnings if you are not reckless or naïve in its undertaking. The energy continues this week. However, so does the energy of distraction. Why are you hesitating on moving to the next level, beginning a new project, or just being creative without any goals? Again, the key and conundrum is around planning. You do have to plan the whole project. This energy is about taking one step at a time and enjoying the process hopefully as much as or more than the result.

Scorpio

Knight of Swords – You are unstoppable this week, and that has two potential outcomes. Either you can impulsively rush in without thinking and either bruise yourself or another. Or you can swoop in with heroic and selfless actions and save the day. The key is thinking before you act.

Sagittarius

beth cavener Four of Coins – Conservation is the energy you will need to work with this week. Your resources are limited, so use them wisely. This isn’t about being miserly but being frugal. Frugal in the sense of simplifying and focusing your energy, within the context of what you feed grows.

Capricorn

Ace of Swords – The energy this week is about breakthroughs. There is clarity in the air which brings new ideas and thoughts into your mix. The challenge is deciding either surfing the chaos like a Zen wave rider or diving into the depths letting the waves roll above the contemplative stillness you have found. The choice is yours.

Aquarius

beth cavener *Temperance – Last week, it was time to take a bit of control over your destiny by just showing up. The high energy continues this week but with less of a roller coaster feel. This energy asks you what is your purpose? The keys to finding these answers is patience and balance. Your life is complex, so balancing out different aspects and aspirations is important to moving forward in the year to come. Think of your life like a refined meal that has many notes to balance its tastes into a delectable dining experience.

Pisces

Beth Cavener Two of Swords – Decision making time. There is a stalemate that is about to happen but just being decisive about what you want and how you want to feel will avoid later confusion. Do not avoid what you know needs to be done.

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Tarot and Art Forecast for Week of May 10, 2020

May 10, 2020 Nina

Today is Mother’s Day. By taking the gender out of the day, this is about recognizing the nurturers in our lives. Nurturing is the process of caring for and encouraging the growth or development of someone or something. They can be your mother, a nurse, a partner, teacher, Mother Earth, a friend, a gardener, or your child… to name a few.

This week’s artist is Uemura Shoen (Uemura Tsune). She is considered a major innovator in the bijin-ga style. Shoen grew up in a time when women were admired for painting but only behind closed doors. Her mother, a widow, nurtured Shoen’s desire to become a painter by defying cultural norms. She let her paint in the corner of her tea shop, were Uemura soon became recognized for her painting skills. At age 12, Shoen’s mother sent her to study under Suzuki Shonen a famous Chinese landscape artist. By 15, Uemura became famous for the purchasing of her painting The Beauty of Four Seasons by the son of Queen Victoria.

Shoen was drawn to the bijin-ga style of painting. Bijin-ga, beautiful woman pictures, were produced from the 17^th century to the 19^th century and were exceedingly popular with the middle class. They traditionally depicted courtesans or “women” Noh performer (all the woman roles were played by men). However, Shoen chose celebrating ordinary woman and often portraying them doing domestic chores or dressing up in their finery. This elevated the women cultural, from lower-class citizens to beautiful and unique. Shoen paid forward the nurturing of her mother to all women.

Thank you, nurturers for giving us space to grow!

May light be on you, around you, and within you,

Nina

Aries

Four of Cups – This is your second four, so let us dive just a bit into fours. Four is the number of stability. Last week you needed to relax to increase your stability. This week is you need to withdraw. A retreat is needed. A time for reworking what is necessary to maintain your strength in the coming months. With that idea in hand you will feel less apathetic and more apt to action.

Taurus

Five of Coins – Some weeks are harder than others, so do not be shock if this week comes at you relentlessly. The best way to work with this energy is to ask for help. Assistance is there though you will need to exchange coinage in some form. This can be as easy as baking cookies for your helper or picking up milk for them when you run to the store.

Gemini

Two of Swords – This week’s energy is full of crossroads decisions, which you cannot avoid. If you come to an impasse, remember make the decision based on how you would feel once you have started on this path. Or another way to see this, the decision is more about the journey than the destination.

Cancer

*Magician – This week’s energy is about bring the divine down into practical applications. Use your resourcefulness and skills to create action. Now is a great time to conjure up next steps. The challenge is that the product needs to not only benefit you but has components that benefit others.

Leo

King of Cups – Careful this is a moody week for you. The energy around you can set you off easily and you may come across as uncaring. So, the challenge is finding balance by being compassionate with yourself. This is not time apologizing for your behavior, but it is a perfect time being vulnerable and tell people how you are feeling. And if they can’t take f@$% them. Figuratively or literally.

Virgo

Two of Coins – It is a balancing act this week. It is essential that you figure out your priorities and then cut that list in half. The key to this week’s energy is flexibility and avoiding overwhelming yourself. This is not a week to multitask or jump from one project to the next.

Libra

Beatien Yazz_mother_daughter_one — Beatien Yazz

*Fool – This week has the energy creating new beginnings if you are not reckless or naïve in its undertaking. If you feel you do not have all that you need to begin a project, now is not the time to rely on seat of the pants logic or free-spirited spontaneity. This week needs planning and preparation before embarking on a new project or direction.

Scorpio

Page of Cups – The energy this week is full of possibilities if you can only be vulnerable and follow your heart. Pull out your rose-colored glass and look for the good. The more positive and open hearted you are the easier solutions will be found. Open heart – Open mind.

Sagittarius

Nine of Swords – Last week you were dealing with the card of change and awakenings. It wanted you to find your fissures, fix what is fixable, and if too broken then it is time for a significant change. Luckily, you have another week to work on this. The energy this week of letting go helps you cope with the strains and fractures of your structures. Worry only about the things you have control to change.

Capricorn

Six of Coins – The energy this week is about investing and receiving. Share and you receive in return, but be warned that goes for good and bad energy. The challenge with this exchange is that it takes a serpentine and circuitous route coming back. So, receiving the gold or the coal can be from surprise sources.

Aquarius

*Wheel of Fortune – It is time to take a bit of control over your destiny by just showing up. Yes karma, fate and luck all come into play this week and nothing is a guarantee. But just indicating your wants will give you that bit of control you need and even the odds more in your favor.

Pisces

Page of Swords – A piece to the puzzle is hidden that you will need to solve a conundrum(s). Using your charm will get you the needed information. Be aware this hiding is not to undermine you. It is done out of ignorance. Also be warned, your intuition is likely to miss some of the facts. This week intellect is your ally.

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Tarot and Art Forecast for Week of May 3, 2020

May 3, 2020 Nina

This painting, The Rainbow, is by George Inness. Inness was born May 1^st, 1825 and became one of the most influential American artists of the 19^th century. He often used rainbows to convey the divine. Inness attempted through his art to demonstrate the reality of the unseen by juxtaposing blurred elements to refined details intertwining the physical and spiritual nature of the object.

The rainbow is symbolically thought of as a call for hope after a storm, a covenant, a bridge to the gods or a god/goddess itself. Scientifically a rainbow is meteorological phenomena that is caused by reflection, refraction, and dispersion of light in water droplets. Rainbows caused by sunlight always appear directly opposite of the sun and observed at a 42-degree angle. The color sequence starting from the top is red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo and violet. Ten degrees above, often not seen but always there, is a larger and fainter secondary rainbow where the color sequence is reversed.

This is a unique time in history where many aspects of our lives are being reflected, refracted, and dispersed to us. Covid has made the unseen seen and flipped our reality. It has united us globally bringing out our divine side of grace, gratitude, and generosity. And in contrast has brought to light the cracks in each country’s structures and culture were our basic needs are not met. We can no longer not see the unseen of global interdependence, inequality between all our workforces, the disparity in health for races, our presence affecting climate change to name just a few. Now is the time to acknowledge both reflections of our world, to bridge our gaps, and to create a covenant to do no harm.

P.S. Signs with an * it a big week for you. Taurus this is a perfect time to get an Astrological Tarot Reading for your coming year. Scorpio it is your halfway mark for your birth year, so if you need a Planetary Reading for a check in now is the time.

May light be on you, around you, and within you,

Nina