29/05/2021
Sensu (扇子) is a gorgeous deck of luxury hand-drawn art playing cards themed around Japan and the Japanese folding fan. The card back is printed with environmentally friendly metallic soy ink on sustainable paper, even the packaging is considered carefully, down to the sugar-cane bubble-wrapping and recycled envelopes and masking tape. What’s more, the deck is used to support animal welfare in various ways, including a portion of all proceeds used to rescue abandoned and displaced cats and dogs around Japan.
The artwork is just gorgeous. The card front and backs have elements in metallic ink to really catch the eye and the flawless and practical two-way design is so intricate you cleverly don’t even focus on the mirroring.
The gorgeous recyclable tuck boxes of Sensu playing cards are breathtaking. Jack Brutus Penny has designed special tuck boxes that bleed seamlessly entirely around themselves, uninterrupted by anything. It is the embossed, intricately cut paper sleeve that shows the card names subtly as the colours beneath peek through. What an elegant and original design!
With a special washi-like textured feel and luxurious foiling, they come wrapped in biodegradable cellophane as the whole project is environmentally sustainable and supports animal welfare. Themed around Japanese folklore and whimsically anthropomorphized animals, this playing card deck will be a displayable treasure for sure. But not only as a display, they clearly have a great narrative through which you can explore the fantastic themes of Japanese folk tales.
I really encourage everyone to follow the link and explore. Jack says the campaign itself will be a journey to experience, with a hand-drawn stop-motion video and original soundtrack made by Japanese artist Marico, and even the smallest tier backers will get tonnes of bonuses. I really encourage you to follow the link and explore the page. If you like the artwork and ethos as much as I do, then do support by ordering your own decks.
Help art help the animals, help the earth.