Illustrating The Hermit
We’ve all had those times when we just need to be alone. I really like what Michelle Tea (see footnotes) has to say about this card in her book Modern Tarot:
“The Hermit comes up when life itself, the universe, needs you to be alone… The Hermit card represents the deep and deeply important things we gain from our time alone.”
Examples from other tarot artists
Traditionally, The Hermit card is illustrated as an older person holding a lamp to light the darkness.
Here are some examples of The Hermit cards by various artists of tarot decks I own and use myself.
The Chariot cards from my collection of tarot decks, clockwise from top left: Rider-Waite Tarot, illustrated by Pamela Coleman Smith; Modern Witch Tarot Deck by Lisa Sterle; The Wild Unknown Tarot by Kim Krans; The Gentle Tarot by Mari in the Sky; Rainbow Heart Tarot by Rachel Rosenkoetter; and The Reclaimed Tarot, ReClaim it! PDX, collage by Melissa Evans.
The Hermit, Take 1
For me, The Hermit card has appeared in my life when I needed to take time to heal from chronic pain. When I was younger, I was naturally in tune with others’ needs, more than my own. To take time for myself was a radical shift that I desperately needed.
Other times, The Hermit has indicated a time of loneliness, grief, or loss. This was the case for me when I first illustrated this card for an art class assignment. Here’s what I drew:
My original illustration for The Hermit, 2021. Ink and watercolor on paper.
In this self-portrait, I am trapped in a dark cave, determined to find my own way out of that darkness.
The Hermit, Take 2
By the time I sketched The Hermit for my tarot deck, the meaning of the card had shifted to me. I had just visited a dear friend who has kids in middle school. She told me all the wonderful things that were happening with her family and her job.
Then she paused and said quietly, as if someone might hear: “Sometimes I just wish I had a little space.”
Later that night, a new image came to me. An astronaut floating in the quiet, deep darkness of space, observing the gorgeous multicolored explosion of a nebula.
So redrew the card. Here’s my sketch:
My second sketch for The Hermit, 2025. Ink pen, colored pencils, and acrylic paint pens on paper.
This time, I wanted to show the serenity that can come from having some S P A C E. Literally.
The final illustration
Below is my final illustration for The Hermit card.
What would it look like if we all had the space we need to live our fullest, truest lives? What would we witness there in the quiet?
The Hermit card illustration from my forthcoming Tarot of These Times deck, anticipated 2026.
© Registered copyright Molly Chidsey, all rights reserved.
Next up: The Wheel of Fortune 🎡
The next card in the Major Arcana I am illustrating is The Wheel of Fortune. Sometimes you’re up, sometimes, you’re down.
What do you think of this card?
Leave me a comment below
I read every comment, and I love to hear from you!
Footnotes
Materials notes from this post
Blick Hot Press 100% cotton watercolor paper; EcoLine liquid watercolor paint and brush pens; Winsor & Newton masking fluid; Dr. Ph Martin Matte Black ink (space background) and Bleedproof White ink (stars).
Starbursts are make from placing a pinch of salt into watercolor while still wet.
I use an Epson Workforce Pro printer to print my drawings onto watercolor paper, using their water-resistant Durabrite ink.
Learn about tarot
Want to learn more about tarot? I highly recommend the book Modern Tarot: Connecting with Your Higher Self through the Wisdom of the Cards by Michelle Tea.
A note about Ai and this project
I do not use Ai (artificial intelligence) to write any of the content for this blog, my other blog Behind the Scenes, or this website.
