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Istanbul Playing Cards
Two shores, one deck: Istanbul’s districts and everyday symbols become a new visual language for play.
Istanbul Playing Cards reimagines a familiar deck as a portrait of the city. Red suits represent the European side and black suits the Anatolian side, while individual cards are dedicated to its districts and neighbourhoods. Together, the 52 playing cards and two jokers offer a way of exploring Istanbul through play.
The traditional suits are redrawn using four everyday symbols: a tulip-shaped tea glass for hearts, a simit for diamonds, a seagull for spades and a cat’s paw for clubs. These motifs connect the visual system to street life, shared rituals and the city’s animal inhabitants. District scenes and architectural details are framed by intricate, engraving-style ornament, with court cards retaining their mirrored compositions.
The two jokers depict Bosphorus bridges, connecting the red and black halves of the deck. A shared navy-and-cream reverse and matching illustrated packaging bring the collection together, carrying the city’s shoreline, boats and silhouettes across the complete set.
Location
Istanbul, Türkiye
Year
2026
Project Type
Graphic & Product Design
Format
52 playing cards + 2 jokers
Design Elements
Custom suits, district illustrations & packaging
01
Istanbul Playing Cards
01
Istanbul Playing Cards
Packaging mockup for a deck inspired by the districts, symbols and everyday life of Istanbul.
02
The Suit System
Hearts become tea glasses, diamonds become simit, spades become seagulls and clubs become cat paws. Red marks Europe; black marks Anatolia.
03
Four aces, two shores
The four aces introduce the redesigned suits and their district portraits.
04
The tea-glass hearts
The complete red heart suit uses a tea-glass emblem to frame districts on the European side.
05
The simit diamonds
The complete red diamond suit reinterprets the simit as a geometric emblem for the European side.
06
European court cards
Mirrored court figures and district scenes share an ornate, engraving-style frame.
07
The seagull spades
The seagull appears within the spade, linking the Anatolian shore with its waterfronts and islands.
08
The cat-paw clubs
The cat-paw emblem carries the second black suit across districts, wooded landscapes and familiar local places.
09
Anatolian court cards
Two court cards bring waterfront and urban scenes into the black suits.
10
Island portraits
The islands form a sequence within the seagull suit, extending the deck beyond the mainland shore.
11
The connecting jokers
The two bridge jokers connect the red and black halves of the deck across the Bosphorus.
12
A Shared Reverse
A navy-and-cream reverse brings boats, birds, waves and the city skyline into one mirrored composition.
13
The Packaging Unfolded
The illustrated tuck-box layout extends the card collection’s visual language across its front, back, sides and flaps.
- Mockup of an ornate navy-and-cream Istanbul playing-card box held in a hand, with the city and waterfront behind it.
- The four custom suit symbols: a red tea glass, a red simit diamond, a black seagull spade and a black cat-paw club.
- Four ace cards showing Fatih and Bakırköy in red, and Kadıköy and Şile in black.
- Thirteen red tea-glass heart cards, from the ace of Fatih to the two of Zeytinburnu.
- Thirteen red simit diamond cards, including Bakırköy, Silivri, Çatalca and Büyükçekmece.
- The red king of Beşiktaş and queen of Beyoğlu, with mirrored court figures and architectural scenes.
- Thirteen black seagull spade cards featuring Kadıköy, Üsküdar, Beykoz, Adalar and other localities.
- Thirteen black cat-paw club cards, from the ace of Şile to the two of Kanlıca.
- The black king of Üsküdar and queen of Ataşehir, using the seagull and cat-paw suit symbols.
- Four black seagull cards showing Adalar, Heybeliada, Burgazada and Kınalıada.
- Two joker cards depicting suspension bridges over the Bosphorus, one split between red and black and one in black.
- Symmetrical navy-and-cream card back with seagulls, waves, a compass motif, bridges and Istanbul skylines.
- Unfolded navy-and-cream playing-card box artwork showing the front, back, side panels and folding flaps.
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