Cardinal Order

This project presents a reimagined royal court through the lens of avian symbolism, transforming the traditional playing card hierarchy into a meditation on leadership, wisdom, and interconnection. By distilling a standard deck to only its most archetypal figures—Jacks, Queens, Kings, and Aces—the work creates an intimate portrait gallery where each court member is represented by chosen birds rendered in linocut relief prints.

For me, turning the deck into an accordion book with card pockets was a way to slow down how it’s experienced, shifting it from something meant for quick play to something that requires reflection. I liked the idea of taking playing cards, usually associated with chance and leisure, and giving them a more contemplative presence, where familiar hierarchies could be reimagined through the lens of birds. The purple riso-printed backs and the matching palette of the book itself tie everything together, connecting old courtly symbolism with the tactile, experimental quality of printmaking. At its heart, this project is my way of thinking about hierarchy and natural order: how birds model different systems of leadership, wisdom, and cooperation, and how those patterns echo (or complicate) the authority structures we’ve built in human culture.

The Process

Here’s a look into the printing process: I first did a mock-up of the accordion book, measuring space for the pockets to hold each card and deciding the dimensions of the covers.

After sketching the design of each card, I carved them into linoleum blocks and did some proofs on small sheets of scratch paper.

Then, after completing designs for the back and front border of the cards, I printed them using the riso-printer and, once dry, stamped them with the linocut blocks.

For the accordion book, I cut and folded the pages and pockets before glueing them together. I made sure the cards fit before doing the front and back covers and assembled the book once everything was dry.

The Result