Heavy Metal Magazine: "Tarot Cards of Eerie Pictures: See the Photo-based ‘Somnia’ Deck"

Nicolas Bruno’s art grew out of a habitual real-world experience called sleep paralysis, and now he’s collected his surreal visions into perhaps the most interesting tarot deck we’ve ever seen.

Sleep paralysis happens on the edges of sleep — when a person is falling asleep or waking up. The person has some level of awareness, but finds they cannot move. The most straightforward form of sleep paralysis is simply that: a temporary feeling of paralysis, which can be disturbing enough. Mix in memories or remnants of dreams, and sleep paralysis becomes terrifying. Those who’ve experienced sleep paralysis often report they felt a presence immobilizing them, they may hear disturbing sounds and feel a weight on their chest. The sensations have been compared to various real-world experiences, none of them good: Suffocation, confinement, bondage, drowning. As with dreams or nightmares, sleep paralysis is tailored to the individual.

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