#c: colleen wing

[giveamadeuschohisownmovie]

Hypothetical MCU show: “Shang-Chi and the Hawkeyes”

PLOT SUMMARY:

A few months after the events of “Hawkeye”, Kate Bishop has been living on the Barton family farm in order to finish training with Clint Barton. Despite a rough adjustment period due to city girl Kate moving into a farm, the training has been going well. Kate is ready to start her superhero career, but Clint is hesitant, especially since he’s started viewing her as his daughter figure. Since the two Hawkeyes have been doing nothing but training, the Bartons decide to take everyone on a vacation to San Francisco.

Around the same time, Shang-Chi has been working with Wong to figure out what the origins of the Ten Rings are. From what they found, they learn that Wenwu stole the rings from the mystical lost city K’un L’un, home of the Iron Fist. Shang-Chi learns this the hard way when he’s confronted by the current Iron Fist, Colleen Wing, who wants the rings back (this would be the first major fight scene of the show).

Shang-Chi and Colleen’s fight is interrupted by a group of mercenaries who are also after the rings. The mercenaries are being led by the main villain Kenuichio Harada (also known as Silver Samurai), the most powerful crime boss in all of Japan and Wenwu’s most hated rival. This leads to a massive chase scene, which ends with Shang-Chi running into the Bartons.

So, unfortunately for Clint and Kate, they’re forced into the fight now that they’ve gotten involved with Shang-Chi. But we’re also hit with a twist; Silver Samurai, upon learning that Clint Barton is helping Shang-Chi, puts all his resources into play to stop our heroes. This is because Clint killed Harada’s twin brother Akihiko, the same Yakuza boss from “Endgame”.

Thus, we have multiple arcs for our heroes to deal with:

1) Shang-Chi trying to make peace with Colleen Wing, as well as trying to prevent the Silver Samurai from stealing the ten rings

3) Clint Barton being forced to deal with his Ronin past once again since his killing of Akihiko has come back to haunt him

4) Kate Bishop on her first rodeo as the newly minted Hawkeye, as well as facing off against super-powered people for the first time

5) While all this is happening, the Barton family and Katy Chen find themselves being targeted due to their ties to Shang-Chi, Clint, and Kate

CAST:

Of course, we have our returning characters Clint Barton, Kate Bishop, and Xu Shang-Chi.

Laura Barton and the Barton kids will likely have more prominent roles in this series, especially since they’ll be paired up with Katy Chen.

Wong comes back as a guest character.

Since Akihiko is Kenuichio’s twin, Hiroyuki Sanada is brought back to play Silver Samurai.

Jessica Henwick reprises her role as Colleen Wing.

Tony Leung briefly reprises his role as Wenwu, specifically to show how Wenwu stole the ten rings from K’un L’un.

MISCELLANEOUS:

1) The season’s story can be split like this: Group A is Clint, Kate, and Shang-Chi / Group B is the Barton family and Katy / Group C is Colleen Wing on her own / Silver Samurai is the main threat to all three groups.

2) I pictured the main trio’s dynamic to be that Clint relates to Shang-Chi due to them being men who are trying to escape their past. Shang-Chi and Kate get along as newbie heroes. Maybe this isn’t a perfect comparison, but think of them as Batman, Batgirl, and one of the Robins.

3) Show ends with Clint giving his blessing to Kate to join the Avengers, as well as inviting Shang-Chi to join. Clint ponders retirement, but then says something about how being in San Francisco has made him consider moving out to the West Coast (obviously a nod to a potential West Coast Avengers team).

4) Colleen and Shang-Chi make peace at the end and it’s implied that Colleen will continue to appear in the Shang-Chi movies. It’s also implied she knows the secret behind the rings (the signal that it sent out at the end of the first Shang-Chi movie).

[digitalfaehaven]

MY TBR LIST !

A list of (almost) every book I want to read, i’ll update as I complete each book ! Suggestions welcome !

I will give each book a rating once they’re read !

Loved - 🫀

Liked - 🥀

Meh/just okay - 🐦‍⬛

Didn’t like - 🪰

Hated - 🪦

Escorted - Claire Kent 🫀

Breaking - Claire Kent 🐦‍⬛

Last Light - Claire Kent

Grave - Shantel Tessier

Cross - Shantel Tessier

Bones - Shantel Tessier

A Court of Thorns and Roses - Sarah J. Maas

Once You’re Mine - Morgan Bridges

That one Night - Emily Rath

Pucking Around - Emily Rath

Priest - Sierra Simone

Captured - Rosa Lee

Haunting Adeline - H. D. Carlton

Butcher & Blackbird - Brynne Weaver

The Mindfuck Series - S. T. Abby

Organized Chaos - Drethi Anis

Unfurl - Elodie Hart

Pretty Monster - Sheridan Anne

Twisted Love - Ana Huang

Vicious - L. J. Shen

Fatal Obsession - Drethi A.

Her Soul to Take - Harley Laroux

No Regrets - Claire Kent

Haven - Claire Kent

Better Run - Alina May

The Ritual - Shantel Tessier

Until I Get You - Claire Contreras

Hunt Me Darling - Maree Rose

No One Has To Know - Carin Hart

Fates and Furies - Lauren Groff

Release Me - J. Kenner

The Claiming of Sleeping Beauty - Anne Rice

Arse Over Irish Teacup - Jude McLean

Credence - Penelope Douglas

Den of Vipers - K. A. Knight

Scream for Us - Molly Doyle

Satans Affair - H. D. Carlton

The Never King - Nikki St. Crowe

Bonded By Thorns - Elizabeth Helen

Fourth Wing - Rebecca Yarros

Throne of Glass - Sarah J. Maas

The Pisces - Melissa Broder

Hitched - Lauren Biel

Across State Lines - Lauren Biel

Beneath the Stars - Emily Mcintire

Praise - Sarah Cate

Devil of Dublin - BB Easton

Shatter Me - Tahereh Mafi

Throne of Glass - Sarah J. Maas

Icebreaker - Hannah Grace

The Irish Lake House - Colleen Coleman

Forget Me Not - Karissa Kinword

Christmas in Coconut Creek - Karissa Kinword

Captured - Lauren Biel

Punk 57 - Penelope Douglas

The Pucking Wrong Number - C. R. Jane

[twwpress]

Weekly Press Briefing #43: April 16th - April 22nd

Welcome back to the Weekly Press Briefing, where we bring you highlights from The West Wing fandom each week, including new fics, ongoing challenges, and more! This briefing covers all things posted from April 16 - April 22, 2023! Did we miss something? Let us know; you can find our contact info at the bottom of this briefing!

Challenges/Prompts:

The following is a roundup of open challenges/prompts. Do you have a challenge or event you’d like us to promote? Be sure to get in touch with us! Contact info is at the bottom of this briefing.

The Woulda, Coulda, Shoulda Josh/Donna prompt fest (hosted by @jessbakescakes and @thefinestmuffin) is open for claiming; fics reveal on June 24th. Details here. 

Photos/Videos:

Here’s what was posted from April 16 - April 22.

Bradley Whitford tweeted photos of himself, Janel Moloney, and Josh Malina after seeing Josh’s show on Broadway: 1 | 2

Dule Hill posted promoting his new children’s book, co-written with his wife Jazmyn Simon, which will release on May 2 and can be preordered now. 

Dule Hill posted a photo of himself and his wife on their wedding day in celebration of their 5th anniversary. 

Josh Malina posted a photo of olives (in a baggie) that his castmate Colleen Litchfield snuck into the pocket of his costume the night Janel and Brad came to see Leopoldstadt. 

Marlee Matlin posted a photo with her castmates in the series Accused, which can be streamed on Hulu. 

Marlee Matlin posted a photo of her T Magazine interview with Tayana Taylor.

Mary McCormack posted photos of her daughter and her daughter’s friends before prom. 

Rob Lowe posted a photo promoting his interview in Interview magazine.

Donna Moss Daily: April 16 | April 17 | April 18 | April 19 | April 20 | April 21 | April 22

Daily Josh Lyman: April 16 | April 17 | April 18 | April 19 | April 20 | April 21 | April 22

No Context BWhit: April 16 | April 17 | April 18 | April 19 | April 20 | April 21 | April 22

This Week in Canon:

Welcome to This Week in Canon, where we revisit moments in The West Wing that occurred on these dates during the show’s run.

Season 5, Episode 19: Talking Points aired on April 21, 2004.

Season 7, Episode 18: Requiem aired on April 16, 2006.

Edits/Artwork

#JOSHDONNA: maybe i won’t ever say what’s in my head by @joshlymoss [VIDEO EDIT]

Fics:

Presenting your weekly roundup of fics posted in the tag for The West Wing on Archive of Our Own.

Josh/Donna

The Diary of Me by Shinyrosa | Rated M |  Josh Lyman/Donna Moss | Complete

He Who Loves His Wife Loves Himself by Chinesepapercut | Rated E | Josh Lyman/Donna Moss | Complete

got my heart set by fairwinds09 | Rated M | Josh Lyman/Donna Moss | In Progress

cause you know that it’s delicate by pumpkinpatch95 | Rated T | Josh Lyman/Donna Moss | Complete

Head Full of Doubt, Road Full of Promise by Shinyrosa | Rated T |  Josh Lyman/Donna Moss | Complete

let me be the one to hold you (and keep you here with me) by JessBakesCakes for thababes |  Rated T |  Josh Lyman/Donna Moss | Complete

hotel rooms and coffee stained sweatshirts by katereadsandwrites | Rated G | Josh Lyman/Donna Moss | In Progress

 Other Pairings/Gen Fic

Ghost Town by starbuckmeggie | Rated T | No pairings listed | In Progress

no one won the war by mmousik | Rated T | Leo McGarry & Toby Ziegler (No pairings listed) | Complete

Retreat to Mandyville by gaydreaming | Rated G | Mandy Hampton & Josh Lyman (No pairings listed) | Complete

In the Clouds by Mabis | Rated G | Josh Lyman/Sam Seaborn | Complete

I Don’t like the people who want me dead by bookwyrm12 | Josh Lyman & Sam Seaborn (No pairings listed) | Complete

Ten Weeks by Jxjxjx | Rated T | Danny Concannon/C. J. Cregg | In Progress

 Multiple Pairings

Labor of Love by mlea7675 | Rated T | Zoey Bartlet/Charlie Young, Josh Lyman/Donna Moss | In Progress

Not Quite the Parent Trap by eowyn_of_rohan | Rated T | Josh Lyman/Donna Moss, Ainsley Hayes/Sam Seaborn | In Progress

made for lovin’ you by sam_writes_fics for thababes (Stranger Things crossover) | Rated T | Steve Harrington/Eddie Munson, Josh Lyman/Sam Seaborn | In Progress

 THE WEEKLY PRESS BRIEFING TEAM CAN BE REACHED VIA THE FOLLOWING METHODS:

Twitter: @TWWPress

Email: weeklypressbriefing@gmail.com

Feel free to let us know if we missed something, if you have an event you’d like us to promote, or if you have an item that you’d like included in the next briefing!

xx, What’s next?

[dispatchdcu]

Amazing Spider-Man: Blood Hunt #3 Preview

Amazing Spider-Man: Blood Hunt #3 Preview #amazingspidermanbloodhunt #amazingspiderman #bloodhunt #MARVEL #marvelcomics #comics #comicbooks #news #mcu #art #info #NCBD #comicbooknews #previews #reviews

  Amazing Spider-Man: Blood Hunt #3 Preview: Morbius is the one man close enough to a cure for vampirism. The vampires of the world cannot allow that cure to be reached. Spider-Man has Misty Knight, Colleen Wing and the Lizard on his side. But it won’t be enough. JUSTINA IRELAND MARCELO FERREIRA (A/C) VARIANT COVER BY TBA 32 PGS./Rated T+ …$3.99 Publisher: MARVEL COMICS Release Date: July 17th,…

[the-hellblxzer]

⚠️ a text meant for someone else. -- @dragonsdefender

[william tell colleen i think? or was it eileen?] you know ollie, i gotta say that after meetin all the other toffs at that party, they ain't all so bad [colleen i think? or was it eileen?] i met one guy who said he'd prefer wearin sweatpants to a suit [colleen i think? or was it eileen?] think his name was danny somethin? you know him? [colleen i think? or was it eileen?] cause he's really got the right idea bout dress codes!

[roi-des-voleurs]

*whole starter written around a 500x gif* -- @dragonsdefender​

Having finally gotten back into Genosha and away from the guys he had cheated in his last poker game of the night, Remy stopped and took a deep breath. He had not even won that much money this time, so clearly those guys were taking things a little too far. Once he recovered his breath, he was about to head towards his place...when he suddenly remembered that he had promised Colleen he would cook at the community center this morning. "Ah merde," he breathed, wiping sweat off his forehead. He would never make it home to shower and still get to the center in time, so Remy hoped no one would pay attention to his slightly-disheveled state.

Once he got to the community center, he crept inside, thinking he might be able to at least wash up a bit in the bathroom. So he did, but once Remy came back out into one of the common areas, he spotted a pile of magazines on a table. Hmm, there were sometimes samples of cologne in some magazines, right? Maybe he could freshen up just one more little bit. Flipping through the magazines, he found one with some samples, so he slipped his shirt off and started to liberally apply said samples to himself. That was when Remy heard footsteps behind him, and he turned to see Colleen watching him. Giving her a sheepish grin, he shrugged and said, "Pardon, chere. I had a late night last night, an' I didn't want t' offend no one by stinkin'."

[aldilu]

There was something weird going on in Chinatown. 

He had a nose for trouble, his mother always used to say, and he couldn’t exactly argue that, looking back at his life thus far. It had proven useful more than inconvenient in adulthood. That flare of instinctual danger! had saved his life a number of times, and he could feel it on the air as he strolled through Chinatown, as he had every time he’d come round. He hadn’t been able to put his finger on why yet, which was how he kept finding his way back here--something few tourists would be interested in. Every step, a different smell was assaulting his nostrils, but Tarik had long grown used to tuning out diverse inputs from the medinas abroad.

He kept his eyes and ears focused, though, trying to feel out what was setting his teeth on edge and raising the hairs on the back of his neck. Someone bumped into his shoulder, and Tarik glanced over, noting a man and younger girl walking quickly in the opposite direction without so much as an apology. “’Excuse me,’” he grumbled sarcastically under his breath, before stopping three steps later on the sidewalk and turning sharply on his heel. The girl’s face had been half-shrouded by her hair, but he’d seen blood on the man’s knuckles where they were wrapped around her arm.  Blood that looked an awful lot like it could have come from the cut he’d caught a glimpse of on her cheek.

“Hey!”

The man and girl bolted, dodging through the crowd and stalls on the sidewalk, and Tarik cursed. “Move, move!” he snapped as he shoved his way through the crowd roughly.  They rounded a corner and disappeared from his sight. “Fuck, move!”

By the time he reached the corner--an alley big enough for maybe three across that smelled strongly of fish--someone else had already gotten there first. The man was on the ground, a puddle of blood growing slowly around his head, and the girl was against the wall, looking terrified. Between them both stood another woman. A woman with a sword. 

A woman he knew. 

Tarik took a step into the alley, narrowing his eyes against the dark to make sure. As if she wasn’t fucking unmistakeable. “Wing?”

[glxrious-purpose]

❛ sounds like I should be worried. ❜ -- @dragonsdefender​

Granted Loki may not have been expecting the woman to kneel--he was fearing it would be a long time before any of the mortals finally did so--but he had not expected a flippant response either. Considering he was garbed in his full regalia and his helm. Did she not know who he was? He rather hoped that was the case, because if she was aware of him and yet was still relatively unconcerned about his presence, he would definitely not be pleased. "Well yes, most mortals should be worried when acting disrespectfully in the presence of a god," he said, frowning, "Do you really think there is no cause for concern? Or, Valhalla forbid, do you think I am merely one of those mortal...what is the term...cuss-players?" As if any mortal could render an outfit as impressive as his.

[deathfxrhire]

[ ✉ → Mom ] houston we have a problem

[ ✉ → Mom ] well i do

[ ✉ → Mom ] nd we're partners which measn you do too

[ ✉ → Mom ] wheres my apt

@dragonsdefender

[thedcmonshead]

❛ Fear is the relinquishment of logic, the willing relinquishing of reasonable patterns. ❜

Ra’s considers himself many things: a doctor, a teacher, a historian, a killer, a savior, a warrior.  All of those things require a certain degree of patience.  He can be patient: time is nothing to a man who has lived for well over a millennium and a half, and will probably live millennia more. 

But his patience, right now, is thin.  The assassin accompanying him tonight is one of the League’s newer recruits.  His training is not yet complete, the brand not yet seared into his skin, and yet Ra’s finds himself growing frustrated because it’s been three months and the man should be further along than this.  True, he’d passed much of the training on to his seconds, his Horsemen, in recent decades, but surely things can’t have fallen off this much.  

The man wouldn’t stop hesitating, and Ra’s had had enough.  His own sword was drawn, held in his hand as comfortably as if it’s an extension of his own limb, and the assassin with him is just barely managing to keep Ra’s incessant, forceful blows from making contact with his body as Ra’s snaps at him, the pit flaring in his gaze, that green sheen that sets so many of even his most experienced assassins’ teeth on edge.  

“We have no room for fear, for hesitation.  If you mean to make no progress on that front, throw your sword down.”  

He noticed that they had company in the next breath, even before the other man could arrange the breath in his lungs into words as he tried to block the blows while also looking over Ra’s shoulder.  Even before the woman spoke.  Ra’s smirked, felt the Pit settle out slightly as he turned to face her with a smile that spoke of knowledge and blood.  “I could scarcely have said it better myself.”

@dragonsdefender

[diver5ion]

[ablackwidowsbite]

Colleen: AboutYou- 7, 12, 34, 39 - Masturbation- 17, 32, 34, 38 - Relationships- 2, 7 - Porn- 4, 34 - Sex- 10, 11, 18, 54, 69, 72, 89, 91, 92, 96 - Toys- 3, 7, 15 - Fetishes- 1, 2, 7, 13, 20, 36, 37, 56, 64, 80, 82, 84 -ThisOrThat- 14, 18, 21, 26, 30, 33, 55, 64, 72, 73, 74, 87

The Most Comprehensive NSFW Ask Around [ Accepting ]

About you

7. What is your favorite type of underwear? Brief cut panties12. What are your turn-ons? Slow kisses, Sparring before hand, Dirty talk, neck kisses.34. Do you orgasm easily? With good amount of clitorial stimulation39. Do you shave your pubic hair? Yes

Masturbation

17.Have you ever masturbated with someone? (Mutual masturbation) Yes32. Are you able to achieve orgasm through only non-conventional or indirect methods? (Breast Play/Hands-Free/Anal) With a pillow. 34. Do you ever double penetrate while you masturbate? Once it was nice38. Describe a typical masturbation session. Laying back in my bed. Using fingers and vibrator usually til I climax. 

Relationships

2. How many relationships have you been in? Only a few7. What do you look for in a partner? Someone that doesn’t try to save  me, someone that respects me and treats me will. 

Porn

4. When is the last time you watched porn and what was it? No34. Have you ever watched porn with a partner? Describe the experience(s). Nope

Sex

10. Do you prefer to give or receive oral sex?  Both really they are both wonderful.

11. Have you had anal sex? How was your first experience? Not yet.18. Whats your favorite position? Reserve Cowgirl54. Do you ever take pictures or videos when you have sex? Explain the experience(s). Nope, but wanted too. 

69. What would you like to improve about your sex life? Be able to let someone in more. 

72. Would you like to have a threesome? Maybe depending on the third party89. Have you ever brought toys into the bedroom with a partner? What kind? Describe the experience(s).  Used dildos and vibrators. It was amazing. Sent me to bigger orgasms. Made my boyfriend come harder. 91. Do you like to have your ass eaten? Haven’t tried it. 92. Have you ever anally fingered your partner? No96. Have you ever double penetrated/been double penetrated with the assistance of a toy? Yes

Toy

3. What sex toy do you currently want? New dildo7. What is your favorite toy? Rabbit vibrator15. Do you own any buttplugs? Nope

Fetish

1. What fetishes do you have? Light BDSM, Choking2. What is your favorite fetish? BDSM7. Are you a top/dominant a bottom/submissive or a switch? Switch13. Do you enjoy tease and denial?Yes20. Do you like spanking/being spanked? Yes36. Would you like to watch your partner have sex with another person? Maybe37. Would you like to have your partner watch you with another person? Yes56. Have you ever pegged/been pegged? Describe the experience. No64. Do you like face-sitting/smothering? A little80. Do you like ball-busting/CBT (Cock and Ball Torture)? No82. Do you enjoy giving/receiving JOIs? (Jerk Off Instructions) Haven’t tried it but could be fun84. Have you ever given or received a foot job? No

ThisOrThat- 

14. Facial or Cum on Ass18. Cum on Tits or Cum on Belly21. Vaginal Creampie or Anal Creampie26. Vaginal or Clitoral Orgasm30. Lap Dance or Strip Tease33. Footjob or Hotdogging55. Length or Girth64. Anal, Clitoral or G-Spot Orgasm72. Vibrating Panties or Butt Plug73. Ball Licking or Rimming74. Nipple Stimulation or Neck Stimulation87. Doggy Style or Missionary

[heroicadventurists]

MCU Phase  5 Most Anticipated

10. 

Although this is my #10 most anticipated, I am still looking forward to this show.  I really liked Echo’s portrayal in Hawkeye, especially her fight sequences.  Other than that, I don’t know where they are going with this show, so that’s why it’s at my # 10 spot.  I’ll definitely be tuning in though. 

9.

I’m mainly interested in this movie to see what happened with US Agent. Hate him or love him, John Walker was entertaining and so complex in Captain America and The Winter Soldier.  It’ll be interesting to see who rounds out the team.

8.

it was Agatha all aloonnnggg.  Agatha was truly captivating in Wandavision and I’m excited to see where they go with this show.  Does it pick up where it left off, or will we go back in time and learn Agatha’s entire backstory.  There is a lot you can do with this character, and hopefully Wanda will make a guest appearance. 

7.

This show moved up my most anticipated list after watching the Black Panther: Wakanda Forever trailer.  The scene where she is creating her armor ‘Ironman style’ looked amazing.  I can’t wait to see what she brings to the MCU.

6.

This is the last hurrah for the Guardians of the Galaxy as we currently know them.  I have thoroughly enjoyed the first two volumes, so I have high hopes for this film.  This film will most definitely be emotional and put an end to James Gunn’s tenure at Marvel.  

5.

This is our first Captain America movie sans Steve Rogers and it’s exciting to see what Sam Wilson brings to the mantle.  I’m looking forward to learning more about Isaiah Bradley (hopefully) and it’ll be exciting to see another  hero earn his wings (Joaquin Torres). We may also see the return of Red Skull, an iconic Captain America villain.

4.

It has been 18 years since Blade has been on the big screen, even though Blade laid the groundwork for the MCU.  Per Indiewire, “  Although “Blade” wasn’t an immediate critical success, the future cult classic was a surprise box office hit for Marvel, earning $131 million against a budget of $45 million budget. The “Blade” trilogy went on to earn a combined $415 million. In many ways, it saved Marvel’s cinema prospects entirely, as well as revived the superhero genre,” Insider says. “‘Blade’ was a moral victory for Marvel, finally establishing it as a rising force in Hollywood. It demonstrated that audiences could be drawn towards Marvel’s C list characters.”   Blade is an unsung hero for Marvel Cinema and it’s exciting to see him back in the fold. 

3.

We’re currently in The Multiverse Saga and Loki has done a lot to usher the Multiverse into the MCU.  Between The Multiverse and Kang, Loki is arguably the most important show on Disney +

2.

This show makes it to my # 2 most anticipated for a variety of reasons.  1st-this show will be 18 episodes, making this feel like a proper television show. 2nd-Daredevil and Kingpin being included in the MCU brings hope that we will see some of our other favorite characters enter the MCU as mainstays (Agents of Shield, Cloak and Dagger, The Runaways, Punisher, Misty Knight, Luke Cage, Jessica Jones, Iron Fist, Colleen Wing, The Hand). 3rd-it’ll be interesting to see Disney’s interpretation of the Devil of Hell’s Kitchen.  4th-Daredevil was a wonderful show on Netflix so it’s exciting that his story will continue

1.

This storyline is iconic and MCU fans have been waiting for it’s adaption the moment Skrulls were introduced in the MCU.  It’ll be fun to see who has been a Skrull this entire time (outside of Nick Fury & Maria Hill) and what the real Nick Fury has been doing on the moon. 

[moodboardinthecloud]

Reviving a Forgotten Artist of the Occult

Today, more than 100 million copies of Pamela Colman Smith’s Tarot card designs, the Rider-Waite-Smith Deck, are in circulation in over 20 countries, making it the most popular set ever made.

by

Sharmistha Ray

March 23, 2019

https://hyperallergic.com/490918/pamela-colman-smith-pratt-institute-libraries/

Pamela Colman Smith (c.1912), photographer unknown (all images courtesy Pratt Institute Libraries unless otherwise noted)

A portrait taken of Pamela Colman Smith (1878-1951) just after she had turned 33 depicts a gamine woman, with fiercely intelligent dark eyes that twinkle with intensity, her face bristling with impish charm.

The black-and-white photograph (taken by an unknown photographer), first published in the October 1912 issue of The Craftsman in an article by M. Irwin Macdonald entitled “The Fairy Faith and Pictured Music of Pamela Colman Smith,” conveys some of the aura and mystery that have so far shrouded this notable illustrator and artist.

Pamela Colman Smith: Life and Work, a small but sensitively curated exhibition at Pratt Institute Libraries in Brooklyn, organized by Colleen Lynch and Melissa Staiger (both alumni of Pratt Institute), constructs a portrait of an artist who demands much more consideration.

Installed across the library’s foyers on three floors, the exhibition presents reproductions of Smith’s art works and magazine illustrations alongside her writings, letters, and documents. These records conjure a constellation of famous friends and patrons, which included figures as diverse as Alfred Stieglitz and Bram Stoker. Smith’s magnum opus is the Rider-Waite-Smith Deck, a set of 78 Tarot cards filled with vivid oracular illustrations.

“Pamela Colman Smith: Life and Work,” Pratt Institute Libraries, Brooklyn campus, installation view: Rider-Waite-Smith Deck

Smith was born in London, England, to wealthy American parents who enjoyed a large circle of influential friends. She lived for a time in New York and Jamaica before moving back to America in 1893 to enroll at Pratt Institute, a few years after the founding of the college. There, she studied under the Institute’s chairman, Arthur Wesley Dow. A painter, printmaker, photographer, and influential arts educator, Dow introduced Smith to the significant styles and ideas of the day, including Art Nouveau and Symbolism, which she boldly asserted in her mature work, with sparkling originality.

In Composition, Dow’s groundbreaking illustrated pedagogical treatise from 1899, he establishes an American approach to Japanese composition. In Dow’s view, three elements are needed to produce a well-crafted and beautiful object: simplicity of line; a balance of light and dark, or “notan”; and symmetry of color.

Smith was deeply influenced by these ideas. In the essay, “Should the Art Student Think?,” which originally appeared in The Craftsman in July 1908 (and is reprinted in a takeaway pamphlet accompanying the show), she writes:

I do not want to see riotous, clumsy ugliness suddenly spring up, but a fine noble power shining through your work. The illustrations that I see in the magazines by the younger people are all dignified and well, carefully and conscientiously drawn, but their appalling clumsiness is quite beyond me—their lack of charm and grace.

I do not mean by charm, prettiness, but an appreciation of beauty. Ugliness is beauty, but with a difference, a nobleness that speaks through all the hard crust of convention.

Smith left Pratt in 1897 without a degree. Her mother had died the previous year, and Smith suffered a spate of illnesses. She soon moved back to London with her father and took up commercial work as an illustrator.

Pamela Colman Smith, “Sea Creatures” (undated), watercolor on paper, Alfred Stieglitz / Georgia O’Keeffe Archive, Yale Collection of American Literature, Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library (courtesy Yale University)

In London, she was taken under the wing of the Lyceum Theater group led by Ellen Terry (who affectionately called her ‘Pixie’), Henry Irving, and Bram Stoker. She traveled around the country with them, working on costumes and stage design. Tragedy struck again when her father died. She was 21 at the time.

Despite her personal losses, Smith was able to find early commercial success and a healthy dose of notoriety in England. In 1901, she established a studio in London and held weekly salons for artists, authors, and actors. In his 1907 Bohemia in London, the English writer Arthur Ransome describes one of these evenings and the artistic circle surrounding Smith, who went by the nickname “Gypsy,” wore orange robes and regaled her guests with folk tales and performances. All the while, she produced paintings, illustrations, calendars, and posters, and even branched out into miniature theater.

Some of her first projects included The Illustrated Verses of William Butler Yeats (1898), and her own writings, including Annancy Stories and Widdicombe Fair (both 1899). For a while, she contributed regularly to The Broad Sheet, a literary monthly co-edited by Jack Yeats, before starting a paper of her own, The Green Sheaf, which she edited and contributed poems and illustrations in color.

It’s believed that many of the mercurial characters embellishing the Rider-Waite-Smith Deck were based on her social set; the most distinguished among them, perhaps, is Henry Irving, the celebrated Victorian-era actor-manager who was later knighted (purportedly Irving was also one of the inspirations for Stoker’s Count Dracula).

Pamela Colman Smith, “Sir Henry Irving as ‘Cardinal Wolsey’ in William Shakespeare’s ‘Henry VIII’ (1904), pen and ink

The cloaked and cultish figures in the Rider-Waite-Smith Deck make their appearance as early as 1904 in Smith’s illustrations, as seen in the reproduction of “Sir Henry Irving as Cardinal Wolsey” in William Shakespeare’s Henry VIII, a pen-and-ink work which was part of a number of postcards and posters Smith made of Irving to promote the Lyceum’s plays. An economy of richly drawn, calligraphic lines describe the drapery and the cassock, while a thick shadow cast on the wall imparts a distinct sense of menace. The illustration underscores the key elements of her signature iconography: a lone, central figure, draped in medieval garbs and veiled in mystery.

Smith had a neurological condition called synesthesia, which is an automatic visual experience, in this instance, activated by sound. In a handwritten draft for the essay “Pictures in Music,” published in the June 1908 issue of The Strand Magazine, she reveals an informed understanding of synesthesia, a concept Dow had introduced to her: “What I wish to make plain is that these are not pictures of the music theme […] but just what I see when I hear music. Thoughts loosened and set free by the spell of sound […] Subconscious energy lives in them all.”

Smith’s solo exhibition at Alfred Stieglitz’s 291 Gallery in Midtown Manhattan was the first non-photography exhibition to be held there. In a letter to the famous photographer and gallerist in advance of her show, she sent the titles of the works as if they were a concert program of Western Classical music, with overtures, sonatas and concertos. The exhibition featured 72 watercolors and was a rapid commercial success. She was to have two exhibitions at the gallery.

Pamela Colman Smith, “The Blue Cat” (1907), watercolor on paper board, Alfred Stieglitz / Georgia O’Keeffe Archive, Yale Collection of American Literature, Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library

A compelling display of nine color reproductions from the original group of watercolors portray Symbolist and Celtic-inspired fairytales, folklore, and dreams, in which spectral creatures appear in phantasmal landscapes. One of the more enchanting works depicts large waves carrying away sleeping figures mesmerized by a sea siren. It’s distinctly erotic. Another depicts a part-human, part-feline creature who may be casting spells upon a pair of lovers in a Paradisiacal Arcadia.

Her color schemes, inspired by listening to music, are strikingly intuitive and experimental, yet subsumed in a spectral light of intrigue and magic. I am left to imagine the effect of the actual watercolors, which must have been wondrous. As Smith wrote in “Pictures in Music”: “When I take a brush in hand and the music begins it is like unlocking the door to a beautiful country […] with plains, mountains and the billowing sea.”

Smith’s participation in the occult is documented through her membership at the Isis-Urania Temple of the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn starting in 1901, which studied the occult, metaphysics and the paranormal. Introduced to the Order by W.B. Yeats, she came to the attention of the scholarly mystic and poet, A. E. Waite, who eventually commissioned her to do the Deck in 1909.

Pamela Colman Smith, “Queen of Pentacles, from the Lesser Arcana, Rider-Waite-Smith Deck” (undated), © 1971 U.S. Games Systems, all rights reserved (courtesy U.S. Games Systems, Inc., Stamford, Connecticut)

The 78 jewel-like illustrations of the Deck represent archetypal subjects that each become a portal to an invisible realm of signs and symbols, believed to be channeled through processes of divination. Queens, Knights, Fools, Priestesses, Magicians, and a whole host of arcane paraphernalia populate these worlds.

The originality of the cards’ stylization, draftsmanship, and composition make for a magnificent aesthetic achievement while displaying Smith’s jaw-dropping imagination for fantasy, folly, ecstasy, death, and the macabre. Two years later, she composed illustrations for Bram Stoker’s last book, Lair of the White Worm (published in 1911, a year after the author’s death) and converted to Catholicism.

Despite her early fame and determination, Smith slipped onto obscurity. She never achieved the financial security she desired, nor the recognition she deserved. The exhibition notes the artist’s feminist bent in her work and life, and includes important documents from her involvement with the Suffrage movement. A sepia-toned reproduction of a photograph titled “Ellen Terry at Ann Hathaway’s Cottage” (1902), taken by Smith’s friend and fellow suffragette, Edith Craig, captures Smith with a circle of influential women and activists, including the suffragist playwright and author Christabel Marshall. It also provides a wonderful portrait of female friendship.

Edith Craig, “Ellen Terry at Anne Hathaway’s Cottage” (1902), photograph; Smith’s friend and fellow suffragette, Edith Craig, captured this image of her mother, Ellen Terry, and several friends in Warwickshire, at Shakespeare’s wife’s childhood home; also pictured are Smith, Lindsay Jardine, and the writer and women’s rights activist, Christabel Marshall (courtesy Shakespeare Birthplace Trust)

Smith was experimental, interdisciplinary, and collaborative long before any of them were fashionable — an intelligent, worldly, and independent thinker with prodigious talent. Still, she died penniless and uncelebrated at the age of 73 in Bude, England. Had it not been for her iconic signature, which she designed while still a student, her name might have been lost forever.

When she was studying with Dow, the champion of Japanese design, he had his students make a monogram from their own initials using the traditional woodblock method. Smith’s monogram, PCS, a serpentine cipher on every Tarot card is a critical claim on their maker’s intellectual property (there was of course no question of a woman possessing intellectual property at that time).

Today, more than 100 million copies of the Rider-Waite-Smith Deck are in circulation in over 20 countries, making it the most popular Tarot deck ever made. As we set forth to recover lost histories and systematic erasures of women’s intellect and labor, this exhibition provides an essential piece of the puzzle.

Pamela Colman Smith: Life and Work continues at Pratt Institute Libraries – Brooklyn Campus (200 Willoughby Avenue, Clinton Hill, Brooklyn) through April 11. The exhibition is organized by Colleen Lynch and Melissa Staiger.

[the-hellblxzer]

“ someone had too much time on their hands. ” -- @dragonsdefender​

"No, I didn't have enough time on me hands, hence why I tried a bloody scryin' spell in an alley!" John had been embarrassed enough that his spell had gone awry; Colleen having shown up immediately afterward just compounded his irritation. Ordinarily he would not have set up a whole flaming circle out where anyone could see it. But the last demon he had been tracking had disappeared from his earlier scrying spell, and by the time he would have found somewhere secluded to cast another one, the demon could have been long gone. "Look, sometimes you gotta do things on th' fly, even magic," he snapped, stomping out the remnants of the fire, "Thought I'd made it clear how serious this is. I ain't jus' startin' fires fer shits an' giggles, luv."

[incomprehensiblelentils]

35, 43, 72

35. What’s your favorite fic you’ve posted?

lololol this question feels DIFFICULT to say the least!!!! however I really feel like the Natasha/Laura Endgame fix-it AU say you will is my most special baby because a) it took me months longer than I intended, because b) it morphed into my own personal tribute/farewell to Natasha, and kind of to Laura as well, since she's a character the narrative has really never cared to develop or explore in a substantial way, and also c) I poured a lot of my own shit into that fic, between Nat/Laura falling in love over mostly email and having an LDR (just like B and I lol), all of the Barton kids being autistic and thus having different traits of myself and my brother (mostly, neither of us have non-speaking periods), and Natasha being implied to be demisexual/ace-spectrum which is also me, lol. BUT obviously because of the kind of fic it is it doesn't get a ton of attention, so, sigh.

43. Is there a trope or idea that you’d really like to write but haven’t yet?

I know that I have talked about that Daredevil fic where Karen and Foggy have very sad grief sex because Matt is dead A LOT OF TIMES LOL and I stg I will finish it someday!!!!!!! As for a thing that I haven't written any of yet, I thought of a cute AU where Karen Page is the GM of a D&D group and Colleen Wing has a big crush on her (it WOULD just be blatant wish fulfillment bc my most embarrassing romantic fantasy involves Deborah Ann Woll being my DM sdjfdsokfj don't look at me) but I haven't done much with that yet, lol.

72. What’s your favorite writing compliment you’ve gotten?

lol after looking through some of my AO3 comments someone said this about the Endgame AU, which just makes me really really happy:

Oh man, your Nat/Laura one was literally exactly what I wanted after episode 2 of Hawkeye, and I definitely messaged a friend about it going "LOOK THIS IS THE CONTENT THAT NAT AND LAURA DESERVE."