As we think about how visual culture began to circulate in the Middle Ages, let’s take a look at the ways that playing cards were designed. You can see some woodblock printed playing cards from around the year 1400 in Megg’s History of Graphic Design, on page 72 of the printed text, or page 327 of the ProQuest e-book through the CUNY library system.
- First, reflect on the visual composition of the cards. In the playing cards, each suit represents a different social class that is assigned an abstract symbol: hearts, clubs, diamonds or spades. What elements of the figure may work to represent the social class that they are a part of?
- The text notes that the design of playing cards has not changed much over the last few hundred years, although contemporary social structure is quite different from that of medieval Europe. If you were to re-design a pack of playing cards, what other abstract symbols might be appropriate for each of the different suits? Develop your own set of symbols for the deck, and try your hand at designing a face card related for one of your new suits.
