18 Sep Justus Harris

Posted at 23:51h in 2023, Workshop by

Justus Harris

WORKSHOP
Justus Harris

Metaverse Alchemy: Embody the Tarot with VR

Go beyond seeing the Tarot and begin to feel the tarot. This VR experience allows you to experience a reading within the Major Arcana using the immersion of VR and will resonate with those engaged in Tarot, embodiment, somatic, and art practices alike.

Specifically, I focus not only on the technology being able to provide more dynamic options of imagery depicting the symbolism of the tarot but also on principles of somatic experiences that are possible.
The Meta Alchemist Tarot has been experienced in development by people from around the world and is based on the Tarot’s Major Arcana. For those who experience this Tarot experience, which differs from a traditional tarot reading in that it offers a chance for free somatic exploration, I would like for them to walk away with a greater understanding of the following.
  • How the symbols of the tarot and thus, other divinatory and magik tools can be experienced somatically.
  • The potential for new immersive technologies to aid in the practice of magick and divination.
  • A totally new experience of the tarot, regardless of previous background and experience.

When we can relate to the tarot with our bodies and in space, a new vocabulary for prompting subconscious understanding is possible. Feeling the lightning from The Tower serpentining in space while held in mid-air, for example, offers a more embodied relationship to the many meanings of the card.

Outside of the VR project, there will be a printed version of the deck designed in Berlin and printed in Germany that is derived from the 3D images. This iteration takes the images from VR and represents them as a more traditional deck that has its origins in the Metaverse.

Bio

Justus Harris (he/they) is an artist, technologist, and technopagan who has been practicing Tarot for twenty years as a way to deepen their understanding of their own life story. The Meta Alchemist Tarot is part of a series of art-based visual systems designed to help people connect to and align with their internal vision of themselves. Their artwork has been featured by TEDx, The Kennedy Center, and The European Commission, and they have shared the Meta Alchemist Tarot in its Virtual Reality form throughout the United States and Europe. Justus’s training has included intensive studies in astrology, creation stories, rituals, and Tarot alongside their professional training at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago.

Justus is originally from North Carolina and is currently based in Berlin, Germany.

“As someone who grew up neurodivergent and queer, Tarot has always helped me to understand the world around me, as well as offering me hope throughout different phases of my life. My intention is to share the power of Tarot with everyone who needs to break out of the narratives that society and their cultures may have boxed them into.”

https://www.justusharris.com/subscribe – for updates on the Meta Alchemist Tarot launch and art
JustusOutLoud – Instagram