SINIS decks

I've always enjoyed palindromes, which are words or phrases that read the same backwards and forwards. Like: "Madam, I'm Adam". Here's another famous one: "A man, a plan, a canal – Panama". Playing cards are all about the art of playing, so it shouldn't come as a surprise to find palindromes on playing cards. That's certainly the case with the SINIS decks, two 2019 released decks of playing cards from Marc Ventosa.

The name SINIS is of course a palindrome, and these decks are all about artistic expression with the use of clever symmetry. To begin with, there are two different colours to choose from, one called Turquoise Blue, and the other called Raspberry and Black. Naturally they match nicely, and make a delightful set together, with blue and red colour palettes being the chief contrasts between them, while the graphic design remains the same.



The tuck boxes have a custom seal that references the creator of the brand, Cardinates, which is a creative design agency targeting playing card enthusiasts and collector, and previously also produced the Stellar Playing Cards.

Typography has had a big influence in these deck's designs, and even the way the names of the decks are printed on the tuck boxes give a hint of this: turquoise.blue and raspberry.black. But it's noticeable on each and every card, especially the courts, which incorporate the actual name of each card printed below the image, along with a unique square-shaped graphic, for a very unusual look that uses ample white space to enhance the image.



The rest the tucks have a deliberately understated unembossed and matt feel that focuses on the sharp lines of the design itself. A snap shot from a court card adorns the front, while a sprinkling of the SINIS letters decorates the back, with each deck's two main colours in clear evidence.

The card backs take over the design from the graphic found on the back of the tuck box, and while the palindromic nature of the letters ensures it is symmetrical, the opposing colours makes for a one-way back.



We're used to seeing customization with cards like the Ace of Spades and Jokers, and this deck is no exception. The Ace of Spades is reminiscent of the style seen in other decks fully devoted to typography, and a similar approach is applied to the other Aces as well. Meanwhile the Jokers pick up the stylistic theme we've already observed on the back of the tuck box, with a block-style design that plays with the letters of the word JOKER. Two gaff cards (a double backer and blank card) round out the deck to 56 cards.

Printing is by United States Playing Card Company, so the handling is just what you'd expect from a Bicycle style deck. The SINIS decks from Marc Ventosa certainly offer some nice variance from your standard decks, and will have appeal to collectors and those wanting to work with something that is still functional and yet looks very trendy.



More images over at Murphy's Magic: turquoise.blue and raspberry.black