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Juan Tamariz, the godfather of close-up card magic
- forgingahead 4y agohttps://archive.is/eq15t https://archive.is/eq15t
- neonate 4y agohttp://web.archive.org/web/20230104151246/https://www.nytimes.com/2023/01/02/magazine/juan-tamariz-magic.html http://web.archive.org/web/20230104151246/https://www.nytime...
- Eumenes 4y agoI was hoping for Magic the Gathering
- deleted 4y ago[deleted]
- Orlan 4y agoIf you enjoyed reading this article, you’ll probably also enjoy Joshua Jay’s book How Magicians Think. Among other things, he describes the experience of spending a few days visiting Tamariz. There’s a significant number of magicians worldwide that have learned Spanish just to spend time around Spain and around other Spanish magicians.
- BaRRaKID 4y agoTo add to this, Juan Tamariz paved the road for other great (and arguably better) spanish magicians to follow him, and it's worth watching them to see how different and amazing Spanish magic is. To name a few check Dani DaOrtiz, Mario Lopez, Rúbi Ferez, and Juan Colas on Youtube and Instagram.
- amval 4y agoAs a Spaniard I had of course heard of Tamariz, but I had no idea there was an Spanish "scene", so to speak. Are you also spaniard or just into the topic?
- Orlan 4y agoThe Spanish “scene” has been around for a while! I have a friend who moved to Spain in the 90s to study under Ascanio. After Ascanio, Tamariz and the late Gabi Pareras seem to have the biggest influences, but Gabi was not well known outside of Spain (until his later years). Only got to see him once in London. Tamariz is still a big influence in the magic scene of course, but DaOrtiz and his Villa Kaps seem to be expanding the circle at a faster pace for the next generation. (Not Spanish, from Puerto Rico now living in the US, and very much into the topic. =) )
- AndyNemmity 4y agoYes, Villa Kaps is a beautiful and wonderful place to study magic.
- BaRRaKID 4y agoI'm from your next door neighbour, Portugal. But I think that anyone that studies magic quickly realizes how amazing the Spanish scene is.
- Orlan 4y agoAnd Luis Olmedo - 2022 FISM winner! Great act. Plus many more.
- iainctduncan 4y agoDon't forget Woody Aragon! :-)
- AndyNemmity 4y agoI have not learned Spanish, but I do travel to Spain to work with Spanish Magicians, so this is quite true.
- torben-friis 4y ago>But in Spain, Tamariz is an icon, less like Blaine or David Copperfield and more like Kermit the Frog. As a spaniard, I think this is a great way to put it. It's not that we consider him a clown, or aren't aware how extraordinarily skilled he is. It's just that he's got such a one-off charismatic personality that your mind ends up classifying him as something separate from reality. There's no need to set a stage or act like he's an otherworldly being. Tamariz just strolls by looking like he's just out of bed, casually defies physics laws, says goodbye and walks away, because he's Tamariz; in the same way that the Roadrunner can keep running through the drawing of a road because he's the roadrunner. It's just the nature of things.
- dieselgate 4y agoThe comparison to roadrunner is an awesome one for someone not familiar with Tamariz
- pvaldes 4y agoGreat way to see it. The man should be an honorific Sesame Street character. Is as close to a real life muppet as you can find.
- narag 4y agoThe comparison with Kermit is, for people of certain age, very natural. We first knew both of them at the same time. And Tamariz used to appear in TV for children. Not only he performed awesome tricks, he also made us laugh with his explosive style. Instant connection with children.
- felipeerias 4y agoTamariz comes on stage as a child’s idea of a wizard: someone eccentric, whimsical and somewhat messy who is constantly doing amazing things without much apparent thought or planning.
- fauria 4y agoIf you like Juan Tamariz, have a look at some of Dani DaOrtiz routines, another Spanish magician heavily influenced by Tamariz. This one from 2022 for Penn and Teller is amazing: https://youtu.be/5_KcQt0z-eE https://youtu.be/5_KcQt0z-eE
- have_faith 4y agoJuan has a great book on his card system that I think Dani is using for this routine (or at least a modification of it). Years ago I spent some time learning it and I think it's one of those things that only gets more impressive when you understand the methodology. It takes so much practice to present a routine as casually as Dani does in this.
- AndyNemmity 4y agoDani has his own system, he doesn't use Juan's, but of course Juan's is great.
- aidenn0 4y agoMany magic tricks, particularly close-up acts, are of the sort that knowing how it works only makes someone good at them even more impressive. I saw Ricky Jay once, and I know he must be doing false shuffles and switches, but his motions are so natural and consistent that I was just more impressed, not less.
- Lewton 4y agoFun fact (from penn jilettes podcast): At the point where he’s tearing up a card, it’s chosen at random and he’s just taking the <2% risk that it won’t ruin the trick
- iainctduncan 4y agofun follow up fact: if it is the card, I can guarantee he has an alternate ending so it will never ruin it - it will only change it. Tamariz is a master of the "outs" (as magicians call them).
- willcipriano 4y agoNo video? Found this one: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=alfwdvQaLIE https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=alfwdvQaLIE New to me but I'm a fan.
- jacquesm 4y agoHe makes the people around him feel like children again, so amazed by the magic. Incredible talent. The closest analogue I can find is Tommy Cooper, who had the same kind of act making you think that he really just can't do it only to come away with your mind utterly blown by how he totally owned you and wondering how far back it all started.
- willcipriano 4y agoHe is what I imagine a wizard would be like.
- InCityDreams 4y agoI turned down an opportunity to see TC live...boring, TV etc. A friend thtat went told me that the show 'started', Tommy came out - and for 20 minutes did nothing. Nothing. And the audience was howling, and crying, with laughter. And then all night. Friends comment: TV did not do any justice at all to to the man (except, the tv execs could see his genius), as everything was 'rushed'. When something went 'wrong', live, he had time to react to the situation. The reaction had people on the floor and unable to breathe - for minutes, and minutes, and minutes. By the way - it took my friend about 20 minutes just to explain nothing happened for twenty minutes, he was laughing so hard.
- jacquesm 4y agoTommy Cooper was severely underestimated by lots of people. His death must have been the strangest thing ever. Alcohol really got the better of him, rumor has it he was quite traumatized from time spent in the army. "The trick with the egg..."
- feiss 4y ago
- anthk 4y agoIf you can read Spanish, I suggest you "El cerebro ilusionista: el cerebro detrás de la magia" (The magician brain: the brain behind the magic). It explains you the link between neuroscience and magic tricks. If you are learning Spanish, technical/science books share lot of Romance origin words which already exist in English, so half of the road it's paved to begin your learning path.
- ankaAr 4y agoI will add my recommendation about René Lavand, card magician with only one hand.
- hajile 4y agoI'm pretty sure that Erdnase or Dai Vernon would be the true godfather of card magic.
- lillesvin 4y agoEven though the phrase "the godfather of ..." suggests otherwise, it's really not a competition or an attempt to determine the exact origin of "close-up card magic", it's just acknowledging the fact that Juan Tamariz has contributed a lot to the art form. That, however, doesn't diminish Dai Vernon's or Erdnase's contributions, but yeah, not a competition.
- hajile 4y agoIf we're going with "contributed a lot", then there are a tons of great card magicians to mention: H.N. Hofzinser (the real father of card magic), Richard Turner, Cardini, Charlie Miller, Jimmy Grippo, Rene Lavand, Bill Malone, Juliana Chen, Michael Vincent, and Shin Lim (off the top of my head -- I'm sure I'm missing someone)
- lillesvin 4y agoSure, but rattling off a bunch of names doesn't really say anything about what they've contributed and what impact it had. This piece is specifically celebrating Juan Tamariz and his contributions to close-up card magic. I don't see why we can't celebrate someone for doing something without having to mention everyone else who's also done something. No one is diminishing their contributions but they're not the topic of the article. If you want to write an article about them, I'm sure someone would be happy to publish it.
- kleiba 4y agoRichard Turner.
- georgehaake 4y agoNY Times. I gave them money for a subscription. I'm fine with that. What I found to be just enough of a deal breaker is the ads remain as a subscriber.
- asdff 4y agoOf course the ads remain, they are for their subscribers. Non subscribers don't even see the article let alone the ads.
- InCityDreams 4y ago...let alone the trackers. Anyway, thanks for being a $upporter.
- uberuberuber 4y agoHis student Dani Daortiz is amazing to watch. https://youtu.be/5_KcQt0z-eE https://youtu.be/5_KcQt0z-eE The explanation of this 10 minute act using a non-gimmicked deck of cards is 3 hours long. https://www.vanishingincmagic.com/card-magic/dani-daortiz-fool-us/ https://www.vanishingincmagic.com/card-magic/dani-daortiz-fo...
- latchkey 4y agoAmazing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tW_8iwB96BQ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tW_8iwB96BQ
- pantulis 4y agoI had the occasion to see him at a little place in Madrid specialised on magic shows a couple of decades ago ("La Cripta Magica"). He was already a legend by then after years and years of TV apparitions here in Spain. After the show, he went down the stage, set up a table in the middle of the venue and asked people to gather around him for a couple of more tricks --obviously this was also part of the show. Those days smoking cigarettes was allowed, and he managed to put some cigarette ashes inside the closed hand of my girlfriend while doing his thing. I was at, what, one meter from him, and knew he was doing something that was not related to the card trick but couldn't for the life of me guess what it would be. He doesn't stop talking, joking, guides your eye to where he wants it to be, throws decoy tricks to make you thing you got him, but then the trick is somewhere else... also a very nice and charming chap. If someone deserves to be called a "magician" it's him!
- noduerme 4y agoMagic is a foreign world to me, but through acquaintances I had the pleasure of getting to know a close-up magician named Armando Lucero, who (I'm told) is considered one of the best in the world. I was invited to see him at the Magic Castle and it blew me away. It really was a childlike experience. But one of the most amazing tricks was a time some years later when I was traveling in another city, rented a car and drove around aimlessly till I found myself at a strip mall coffeehouse, and sat down with some coffee. At some point I turned around and sitting at the table behind me was Armando, wearing black, by himself with a coffee, a strip of felt and a deck of cards on the table. Practicing. It was an incredible coincidence. And I got a personal show. The thing that really strikes me about this article is how the magician's philosophy of his art is so similar to what I've heard Armando wax poetic about: He studies neuroscience and psychology, has contributed to brain imaging studies, and seems irrepressibly fascinated with learning about complex subjects... not so much in the service of magic as out of a staggering intellectual curiosity. Magic is just his ideal vehicle for synthesizing that knowledge. It's unbelievably impressive, like watching someone who's thinking in the Assembly Language of the human brain.