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Questioning Phelddagrif's avatar

Thanks for the callout! Always a pleasure to read, and there's lots to chew on here. Really loved the stuff on Amy Weber's work (obviously) and that was a great close reading on Dark Sphere's flavor text. It's a doozy and some of my favorite in the game.

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Vorthos Aspirant's avatar

This was a very interesting article. I love the inspection of the more esoteric art in Magic and how some, especially early pieces, took a non-literal angle on the prompt. Early artifacts in particular do seem to best exemplify this. "Bösium Strip" by Steve Luke, Pratt's "Phyrexian Furnace", and Quinton Hoover's "Elkin Bottle" are more examples of the conceptual approach you're talking about. Hoover's painting is interesting because it has a Klein Bottle, but the twisting ribbons and frame nake it almost dissappear into the image.

I also feel there's a throughline between this article and Questioning Phelldagrif's most recent one. Some of the cards you highlighted here would function excellently in the same or similar function as Tarot cards. Even more representational cards like Dan Frazier's "Benalish Infantry" are fit for purpose, with the inclusion of swords, banners, and imagery of keys.

Also Adam Rex has a substack!

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