Amber Rae is a born-and-raised Floridian artist who is passionate about conservation, science, and spirituality. She’s written and illustrated children’s books, but has recently been turning her love of the swamp into divination decks—one of which features a unique, collaborative approach.
In this conversation, we explore her Floridian Mythos Oracle, talk about how I can’t draw, and discuss some slightly more uncomfortable topics like imposter syndrome and the ethical (or unethical) use of AI within the wild world of art.
These are just the highlights, my friends. For the full scoop, watch the above video!
Beauty and Spirituality in the Swamp
Amber has spent her entire life in Florida. Growing up on the edge of a swamp helped encourage her love for ecosystems… and all the swampland critters influence her artwork today. She’s illustrated several children’s books, but her true passions are nature conservation and conservation art.
If you’re not familiar with conservation art (because I definitely wasn’t), it basically uses artwork to raise awareness for things like nature, various ecosystems, or endangered animals.
In adulthood, Amber became somewhat disconnected with religion, and—like many others—the Christian church. For a while, she lost touch with spirituality, but the swamp would bring her back.
“It’s like a cathedral,” she said, describing her cathartic experience with the swamp. It seems that a connection with nature—both the environment itself and the creatures within it—would bring her the connection she needed.
Eventually, Amber started getting into Tarot. And at some point, she decided that she wanted to create divination decks for herself… which I suppose is the perfect segue into my next group of paragraphs.
The Floridian Mythos
Amber’s first divination deck, The Floridian Mythos Oracle, was inspired by her life in Florida (I mean, it’s in the name!) and her love of the Everglades.
The Everglades, by the way, ranks as one of the largest wetlands and continuous sawgrass marshes in the world, even in spite of the fact that we humans tried rather extensively to drain it—a fact Amber reminds me of during the interview.
It’s a big place. And it deserves some big art! Check out some of these samples that I borrowed from Amber’s website.
…but that’s not all…
A New Style of Oracle Deck
Another project, which is launching soon, is a new style of oracle. Amber describes it as a collaboration between the artist and the reader. She’ll provide the illustrations, but you name the cards and create the meanings.
Amber noticed that people had their own, unique reactions to certain images in her last deck. For instance, her card “Moonlight” features a water moccasin. To Amber, that imagery embodied the concept of healthy boundaries—it was a positive thing! But many folks (who I imagine might have a fear of snakes) viewed it as something scary or negative.
Running with that idea, she decided to give people the opportunity to go on a journey of self-discovery for an entire deck.
It makes sense. And it’s called the Sargasso Journaling Oracle if you’d like to check it out on Kickstarter.
Honestly, I think everyone should do something like this. If you’re not into Oracle decks, then do it with Tarot, runes, or a set of stones or something. Come on people, come up with your own meanings to stuff! Not everything has to be prescriptive. Not everything needs to come out of little white books. Personal meanings are always more powerful.
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Why I Suck at Drawing
If you listen to the interview, you can hear me share a short personal anecdote of trying to take an art class as a kid. The moral of the story isn’t that I suck at drawing, it’s that the teacher (probably unintentionally) made me feel bad that I sucked at it. And that really discouraged me from ever trying to get better.
Amber, on the other hand, says that even stick figures are valid form of expression—and I can definitely do that! She hopes that her classes inspire people to express themselves regardless of their skill level… oh, and that brings me to the next point… classes…
Or more specifically, workshops.
Summer Magick Workshops
Summer Magick Fest 2026 features Amber as a headliner. Here’s what she’ll be teaching:
Prehistoric Art Watercolor Exploration
Amber was inspired to create this workshop after hearing a lot of people say they wish they could do art or could even just draw a stick figure. Cave art is simple, beautiful and great for a beginner. All humans have the ability to create works of art which can create a sense of safety, because in prehistory for humans art was survival- to track the seasons, to show what we have seen, to build community but also to celebrate the spiritual. Art also offers introspection, learning about and trusting oneself. This is a workshop about letting go of the fear of creating ‘bad’ art and tapping into the human nature of being creative. You will be provided with natural pigment and genuine gemstone watercolor paints to use on a paper-clay tablet made to look like stone. Limited to the first 20 participants, at no cost.
Healing Frequencies Genuine Gemstones Watercolor Class
Amber Rae uses paint made from different ground gemstones in her art. Gemstone watercolors vibrate differently based on your emotions and the gemstone properties. Participants in this workshop will get to choose from hidden palettes based on your own intuition regarding which frequencies resonate the most to you personally. Gemstone paints are much like pulling a Tarot card- the right one will find you. Amber will lead you through a tutorial on how to paint a beautiful starry night sky landscape. Watercolor paper, gemstone paints and step by step instruction sheet to take home will be provided to each participant. Limited to the first 15 artists, at no cost.
Did you get your tickets yet?
Personally, I find the idea of gemstone paints to be fascinating. Can’t wait to try it out! But yeah… I’ll probably be painting stick figures.
I Am He as You Are He
Imposter syndrome is a real thing, especially in the spiritual community. It doesn’t matter if you’ve got 10 days or 10 years of experience in something… sooner or later you might just be asking yourself: why would anyone want to listen to me? And when that thought struck Amber, it almost stopped her from creating entirely. Luckily, that didn’t happen.
I’ve had my own bouts with self-doubt. In fact, for a long time, I decided I would just say nothing at all. But don’t worry guys—these days, you can’t shut me up that easily. Plus, I’ve got a YouTube channel that’s full of people who are willing to answer all my questions ad nauseam.
You can hear Amber (and me) discuss feelings on this issue in the second half of the interview.
AI Ethics in Art
Before we get into this section, perhaps spend a moment and try to reflect on this set of questions: What are the pros and cons of AI? At what point does using AI become unethical? What constitutes ethical use of AI?
Some people arrive at those conclusions rather quickly. They feel it in their bones. AI is amazing. It’s the next big thing.
Alternatively? AI is evil. It’s destroying the world.
For others, it might take longer… or in fact, it might be difficult to arrive at any sort of conclusion at all.
Really, it’s just a huge grey area.
I’m not going to sum this section up. If you want to hear our various opinions on AI, you’ll need to listen to the full interview.
Oh, and all hail our benevolent robot overlords!
Finding Amber Rae Online
Amber is pretty easy to find online.
- Website: AmberRaeWatercolor.com
- YouTube: amberraewatercolor
- Instagram: amberraewatercolor
I’ve linked her projects elsewhere on the page, but here’s where you can find more info:
Don’t miss out. Here’s what’s coming up…
Signature Question
What’s your favorite sound? Amber’s is “the wind through trees” … especially if those trees are in the middle of a swamp! She also frequently uses a single song on repeat to help her “stay in the zone” while she’s painting. She says it often informs the emotional aspects of her work.
Want to hear more than that? Go watch the full interview! It’s literally right there at the top of the page.
Conclusion
It was awesome to connect with Amber and learn more about her background and work. I’m really looking forward to attending her workshops next month, but fully expect to be painting stick figures—that’s okay, I’m sure it’ll be a safe place to express my artistic ineptitude.
Did you enjoy this article? Please consider subscribing to my website or to my YouTube channel. I know I sound like a broken record sometimes, but just drop a comment on the actual video or check out my Patreon page. Perhaps consider ordering my book. There’s lots of ways to help support, even if it means just sharing my content with another human.
I can’t wait to show you what’s in store for the rest of Season 4! That’s all for today, but stay tuned for more soon!
Aerik Arkadian 
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