Las visiones proféticas del tarot tradicional literalmente cobran vida en las calles de Haití gracias a la recreación fotográfica de las cartas que hace Alice Smeets en su serie Ghetto Tarot. Para la serie, la fotógrafa belga colaboró con el grupo de artistas de Haití Atis Rezistans [artistas resistentes], para crear las diferentes escenas que reinterpretan la baraja del tarot de principios del siglo XX. “Llevaba mucho tiempo queriendo interpretar la baraja del tarot con mis fotos”, explica Smeets en la página de Indiegogo del proyecto, “pero hacer fotos normales de las escenas me parecía demasiado simple. Mui objetivo era crear una baraja muy personal sin perder el espíritu diferente de cada carta”.

Atis Rezistans fueron los compañeros ideales para la realización de este concepto, convirtiéndose ellos mismos, su arte y sus casas en poderosos símbolos de reinterpretación moderna de la baraja. Además, según explica Smeets, al utilizar el término "Ghetto", los artistas “se liberan de su trasfondo despreciativo y lo convierten en algo bello". Smeets añade que “el trabajo de los artistas haitianos me hizo darme cuenta que está en nuestras manos asignar un valor u opinión sobre una cosa tangible o intangible. Si nos damos cuenta de que somos nosotros los que elegimos ver destrucción o desesperación en algo, o por el contrario considerarlo como el principio de algo nuevo, podremos cambiar el significado de toda palabra, acción y sentimiento”

See the traditional tarot cards come to life in this creative, provocative, modern deck. Inspired by the creativity and strength of the citizens of the ghetto, the Ghetto Tarot will guide you in changing your perception, turning negativity in your life into positivity while discovering the power of your own thoughts.

The Ghetto Tarot is a photographic interpretation of the well-known traditional Rider-Waite-Smith deck. Set in the Haitian ghetto, these fresh scenes were inspired by those originally created in 1909 by the artist Pamela Colman-Smith. The scenes were replicated by Alice Smeets with the assistance of a group of Haitian artists called Atis Rezistans using only material they were able to find or create locally.

While Tarot originated many years ago when the circumstances within the world seemed very different, they still resonate today with timeless symbols that can be applied to our busy modern world. And not just our modern, Western world, but also to any other continent, country or culture, including the Haitian Ghetto. So here comes a contemporary, provocative and vivid tarot deck!

The photo project aims to reach beyond cultural boundaries of prejudice and ignorance to achieve a much-needed transformation of the collective conscious perception of the ghetto whilst discovering the power of our own thoughts. Therefore the Haitian slum is presented in another light and the pictures highlight the creativity and strength of its citizens.

The photographer is certain; Only we ourselves are able to assign value or judgment to a tangible or intangible thing, which creates a positive or negative emotion. We lend a word meaning according to the way in which we were raised, our personal experiences and depending on who taught us to speak. Every one of our sentiments is a choice based on our thinking. We can look at destruction and see either despair or the start of something new. With this awareness comes the power to change the meaning of every word, action and emotion. It’s all about perception.

This means we are not slaves of our pasts, we are not imprisoned by our current societal pressures, but we are free if we choose to be. We can give ourselves the freedom to create our own reality!