The Parrot of the Loteria Deck

"The Parrot" Loteria Card

"The Parrot"

There is no doubt that this is one colorful and garish bird, but good grief it's hard to paint!  I've got countless tubes of color in my paint box, but that doesn't mean it was easy to do justice to this guy.  Just look at him!  I had no idea the different shades of blue on your standard parrot.  Some are flat, others iridescent, and all of them are combined into ways that made my head spin.
But all in all, I think I got it about right.
This was the final card that I needed to complete for the Diamond suit.  I'd made The Rooster card months ago and had forgotten that it had a value of the King of Diamonds.  So suddenly I realized that one more suit on the loteria deck is now complete.  Half way there!

Update: For details on what this card means for fortune telling, I've updated the main site.

The Heart of the Loteria Deck

"The Heart" Loteria Card

The Heart Loteria Card

I'm going to have to repost this painting without the banner on the front to make the subject more clear.  This is a metal heart cast from copper and arranged to serve as an aeolipile.  The vessel is filled with water and suspended on an axle over a fire.  When the water inside turns to steam it escapes through two tubes bent at 90 degree angles.  This causes the whole 'heart' to rotate.
Due to the placement of the banner on this image, this isn't immediately clear.  The steam escaping out of the artery is visible but the lower tube is hidden.
Although the numerical value of the card is exactly like what should appear in the Pope's Deck, I am using some license as far as determining what the suit value of the card should be.  In this case, the card should be either the king or queen of diamonds.  But c'mon, it's a Heart!  So I bumped it's value to the Ace.
What this means is that I'm not quite done with the diamond suit.  I'd planned to be finished today, but that's not going to happen.  It will happen soon, but not just yet!

Update:  For tarot readings that include this loteria card, more information is available on the main site.

Watermelon Loteria, the Card of Summer

"The Watermelon" Loteria Card

The Watermelon

This loteria card features a design carved into the rind of a summer watermelon.  This actually isn't a new thing at all limited just to buffet tables on cruises.  Although most people in North America are familiar with the classic Jack-o-lantern face carved into pumpkins, the watermelon has a rind which is more suited to the purpose.
Designs like this one have many meanings for farmers and others who depend on crops and a full harvest for their livelihood.

I'm including a more detailed analysis of the meaning of this card on the main Loteria site.  Updates coming shortly!

It really was cruel to paint something so refreshing during a heatwave that is ravaging the High Desert.  I think my Id was longing for something to escape the 110 degree temperatures!

Update:  Loteria divination takes this card seriously, as is explained on the fortune telling site.

What is Behind Loteria?

Back of Loteria Card

This tessellation pattern was created for the back of the Loteria cards.  I wanted to do something that would capture the intricate nature of an M.C. Escher print.  Actually, when designing the cards I was originally thinking of having lots more Escher-like patterns, but there is a catch that wasn't obvious at first.  Patterns that repeat themselves make for great card backs, but hard to format as acard FRONT!  For the face cards, a single, large image is preferable.
But the back of the cards are a different story.
This figure in this painting was based off of Shimbo of Darktree Tower, the avatar of Francis Sandow.  The painting is different only in the fact that it doesn't include the greenish cast to the skin which is a staple of temple images of Shimbo.