Symbolistic cards glide smoothly through the exit of their fresh, still new golden box. Two hands grasp them and split them into neat piles.

A round, soft, yet serious face with black square glasses and a long, well-defined black mustache and beard looks down at the cards, ready to select five of them for a tarot card reading.

As he sets them down, he interprets and reads the cards out loud, like the verses of a song, telling what can be done to improve and change his life circumstances.

When he is not teaching digital art and the principles of design on the weekdays at El Camino College, Professor Robert Lacki reads tarot cards for friends and students in his free time – some of whom were former alumni.

“I like to help people out,” he said. “I feel more connected, more in tune with other people.”

Tarot is one of many ways people offer and obtain guidance on how to better handle and make informed decisions in their lives.

Originating in Italy in the mid-15th century, tarot was initially a form of card-playing just for fun. By the early 19th century, the perception of tarot as a means of fortune-telling and looking into a person’s life started to become popular.

According to the 2025 Tarot Cards Market Report, presented by Cognitive Market Research, which is headquartered in India, the global tarot card market is projected to grow to $93.8 million in 2027.

“Tarot card readers are thought of as typical fortune-tellers and psychics, but for people like myself, we use tarot for psychic, self-discovery and self-expression [purposes],” Annie Aboulian, a former ECC professor and current full-time English, mythology and literature professor at College of the Canyons, said.

Aboulian, 40, has been practicing tarot for over a decade and has created decks of tarot cards and has her own website.

“The first 22 cards in a deck refer to The Hero’s Journey, which we go over in our literature class,”Aboulian said.

The Hero’s Journey is a type of writing structure used in stories where the protagonist embarks on a journey and goes through various stages, eventually leading to a completely new perspective on life.

Despite the stereotypes and controversy surrounding tarot card readers and how they practice this particular kind of spiritual channeling, she advises that the main intent behind tarot is completely different.

“I know that when people think of tarot, they think of the Hollywood fortune-telling stigma,” Aboulian said. “But tarot is just like anything else. It depends on how you use it.”

Just like Aboulian, Lacki uses tarot cards for clarity and hope in a present situation he is experiencing.

Introduced to tarot at 8 years old by his mother, Lacki grew accustomed to seeing the tarot card readings she would do, although he did not practice it himself.

The idea of tarot as a guide for one’s path in life, as well as spirituality, stayed with him throughout his adolescence, until the 2020 pandemic hit.

“During the pandemic, I was working independently for my design agency, specifically working on the 2020 Census for the State of California, and the Vaccine Initiative in California,” Lacki, 38, said.

The agency, Glass House LA, which he established in 2018, focuses on graphic design, branding, web design, advertising and motion design for clients.

Once classes resumed in the fall of 2021, Lacki began his job as a professor at El Camino, teaching graphic design.

While at home one day, isolated from the rest of society, Lacki saw the package of tarot cards that he collected, took them out and went on a spiritual journey that would forever alter his view on life and how to navigate it.

Over the next few years, Lacki progressed within the realm of tarot, learning and memorizing the meaning of the cards in a deck one by one, collecting a few themed ones and even creating his own deck by hand.

“It takes a long time to illustrate everything [to design the cards],” Lacki said. “[For a deck of 57 cards], it takes about a year.”

By the time he became a professor at ECC, Lacki was able to read and decipher tarot cards for his friends and fellow students, some of whom enjoyed his intuitive insight into their lives and situations.

Jeongmin Kim, who is Lacki’s current teaching assistant and a former El Camino student, said that his readings are very relaxing.

“He is [an] instructor, but at the same time, [he] has healer energy,” Kim said.

After moving to California from Korea three and a half years ago, Kim learned more about tarot through a conversation she had with Lacki.

“I talked to him, had a conversation, and he recommended [that I] make my own [cards],” Kim said.

Before she left to come to the United States, a friend of hers bought her a box of tarot cards as a gift.

“I got the recommendation [to read tarot cards] through friends,” Kim said. “They said that I might be a good reader and make money [off of it].”

Although Kim doesn’t see tarot to pursue and remain dedicated to, she sees its potential as one of the mediums in guiding people in their lives.

“The format is different, but it conveys a similar function,” Kim said. “Different faiths get you toward one goal, and [that] is to help you. For every person, there’s a different medium.”

Starting with a simple, unique project in 2022, Lacki incorporated this style of art and spirituality into his coursework.

It included learning about the history of tarot, in addition to making sketches and in the process, creating a small deck of cards through Adobe Illustrator. The project, which consists of a module lasting about three weeks, was done for three straight semesters.

Lacki hopes to continue this project in future semesters.

From the day he uncovered his love for tarot, Lacki has found a new purpose in life, and a way to not only cultivate peace and tranquility, but to others through his readings.

“Spirituality is free flowing,” Lacki said. “[Tarot] helps to heighten my intuition, and I feel religion is too structured.”