Speaker, storyteller, and trained as a historian specializing in the history of ancient books, Isabelle Nadolny also works at the Bibliothèque nationale de France (French National Library), where she was able to gather most of the documents that fuelled her research.

She gives talks and workshops on the history of tarot and cartomancy, and performs on stage as an actress and storyteller. She also gives workshops on the art of storytelling.

As a storyteller, when she first encountered the Tarot of Marseilles, she saw in it an enormous creative potential. This propelled her latest project as a performer, 'Contes des Arcanes' ('Tales of the Arcana'), 22 epic stories inspired by the themes and archetypes of the 22 tarot arcana.

As a historian, she quickly realized that this mysterious card game, which first appeared at the end of the Middle-Ages, was the bearer of an immense occult, artistic and cultural heritage.

This led her to research and write her book, 'Histoire du tarot, origines, iconographie, symbolisme' ('A History of Tarot: Origins, Iconography, Symbolism'), which was published in 2018. She is currently preparing a second book: 'Histoires du tarot, contes, mythes et légendes' ('Stories of Tarot, Tales, Myths and Legends').

Published works

Histoire du tarot / Escalquens, Editions Trajectoire, 2018