The Blackcat Playing Cards are designed by Paola Valtellino, a designer with a great passion for skateboarding. For many years she practiced skateboarding, trampled many parks and made many falls. A few years ago, Paola fell in love with the mesmerizing art of card flourishing. They reminded her of the performances made with her boards, so much dedication and dexterity.
A year ago, she started to conceptualize her own deck of playing cards. She wanted to create something that amazed, having watched for videos of people who are flourishing and often times, she’s focused on the card backs. With that, her goal was to create a back that would be eye-catching.
Last week, we had a chat with Paola about the inspiration behind the Original Blackcats, support from the community and her favorite playing cards.
What is your inspiration behind the Original Blackcat Playing Cards? How did you come up with the idea?
I’m a skater, I’ve always dressed like a skater, so I wanted to create a “skater” deck, I know it sounds strange, but it’s like that. I grew up with big brands like Vans or Element and I wanted to bring that kind of design, that kind of philosophy in my cards, a very street view that meets the classicism of the cards.
All the elements inside my cards are “classic” I did not want to distort too much the original design, I put my own, it’s all personalized, from the patterns of the clothes of the KQJ to the design of the axes. The mascot of my deck, the black cat, is the result of my other passion, I love cats, they are fast, flexible and responsive, if they could go on the skate I think they would be cool!
We first noticed the deck on Instagram. What do you think of the community in terms of the feedback and support that you’ve been getting so far?
I found many people ready to support my project, I did not think I would like so many people, I was pleasantly surprised by this. Many people who follow me on Instagram have supported my project, with 4 weeks to go, I hope to attract more backers with the cool design.
Finally, what are your favorite playing card decks?
I’m “new” in this industry, can I say that? so I’ll tell you what I used to train and I found it perfect for me. I started with the Monarchs, I received them as a gift from my boyfriend and cabbage, they are fantastic, a perfect feeling, a unique design. I recently funded the Caroline Ravn campaign with her RAVN, they are amazing and the concept behind fascinates me.
If you liked what you read here and would like to support Paola, head to Kickstarter here! Pledge starts at €10 and the deck will be printed by Cartamundi.
