Cloverdale Arts Alliance Hosts Madame B's Tarot Readings Exhibit

Photographic series by artist James William Moore explores identity, symbolism, and transformation through tarot imagery.

Apr. 9, 2026 at 6:18am

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An extreme close-up of shimmering, textured fabrics in rich jewel-toned colors, capturing the visually bold and emotionally resonant nature of the Madame B's Tarot Readings exhibition.Madame B's Tarot Readings blends theatricality, satire, and visual storytelling to invite viewers into a world of glamour, mystery, and self-invention.Cloverdale Today

Cloverdale Arts Alliance is presenting 'Madame B's Tarot Readings,' a vibrant exhibition featuring works from artist James William Moore's ongoing photographic tarot series. The installation brings together portraiture, costume, storytelling, and theatrical style in a visually rich exploration of identity, transformation, and queer experience.

Why it matters

The Madame B tarot series uses the familiar language of tarot to invite viewers into a world of mystery, glamour, symbolism, and self-invention, while also making room for wit, satire, and a knowing sense of play. The work embraces appropriation, exaggeration, and camp as creative tools, using humor to both celebrate and gently unsettle the archetypes and visual traditions it draws from.

The details

The exhibition features works from Moore's ongoing photographic tarot series, centered on the characters from Madame B's personal tarot deck. Madame B first appeared in Moore's short horror film 'Inner Fears: Portrait of the Teller's Fortune' and has since grown into a larger creative universe. The series explores ideas of identity, performance, vulnerability, fear, and power through a blend of theatricality, satire, and visual storytelling.

  • The exhibition will be on view from May 16 through July 12, 2026.
  • Madame B first appeared in Moore's short film 'Inner Fears: Portrait of the Teller's Fortune'.

The players

James William Moore

A photographer, artist, curator, educator, and host of the podcasts 'Lattes & Art' and 'Art Happens: The Divine Mess of Art History,' presented by J-Squared Atelier. His work explores identity, narrative, and cultural symbolism using camp, kitsch, theatricality, and appropriation.

Will McCoy

The Gallery Director at Cloverdale Arts Alliance, who says the exhibition represents many of the ideals the gallery and community strive for.

Cloverdale Arts Alliance

A local arts organization hosting the exhibition, which they say is the largest collection of Moore's tarot card work presented to date.

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What they’re saying

“Madame B exists in a space where glamour, illusion, fear, and self-invention collide. The work is deeply invested in the performative nature of identity—how we are seen, how we construct ourselves, and how image can become a site of both protection and revelation.”

— James William Moore, Artist

“Mr. Moore takes an unusual approach to images that we think we know well. His work is at once funny, thoughtful, and hard-hitting, and it represents many of the ideals we strive for in our gallery and community. The Cloverdale Arts Alliance is honored that we have the opportunity to host the largest collection of his tarot card work presented to date.”

— Will McCoy, Gallery Director, Cloverdale Arts Alliance

What’s next

The exhibition will be on view at the Cloverdale Arts Alliance from May 16 through July 12, 2026. The gallery will host related programming and events during the run of the show.

The takeaway

The Madame B's Tarot Readings exhibition showcases an artist who uses the familiar language of tarot to create visually bold, emotionally resonant work that balances spectacle with sincerity, humor with tension, and fantasy with reflection, inviting viewers to explore themes of identity, transformation, and self-expression.