I am Elettra Deganello, an illustrator and designer based in Prato, Italy. 
I grew up in northern Italy and 
graduated magna cum laude in Industrial Design in 2014 and Design in 2017 (Università degli Studi di Firenze, Dipartimento di Architettura). The two graduation theses I discussed, focused on the topics of book design, sustainability and aesthetics, allowed me to achieve the XIV Mediarc
 International Festival of Architecture in Video (Università degli Studi di Firenze, Dipartimento di Architettura), the honourable mention of the graduation prize Alberto Bardazzi’ (PIN — Polo Universitario ‘Città di Prato’), and the dignity for publication.
Since 2016, I have been collaborating with businesses across diverse sectors, offering comprehensive design and communication services. Watercube (Vicenza, Italy), Officina dei Saponi (Prato, Italy), Passione Playing Cards LLC (California, USA), Meadowlark Decks (Nebraska, USA), The Ice House (Portsteward, United Kingdom), Rare Playing Cards (Ontario, Canada), Naiadi Cosmetics (Brescia, Italy), Casa Pappagallo (Grosseto, Italy), Studio Ceri (Prato, Italy), Lilli La Jolla (California, USA), Moranduzzo (Firenze, Italy), Taschen (Cologne, Germany) are some of the names I have worked with.
Regarding the field of architecture, in particular, over the past few years, I have had the opportunity to work on visualizations and narrations destined for Marco Polo International Airport, Dubai International Airport, Expo Dubai 2020, and Villa Les Cédres, to mention some.
Collaborating with Passione Playing Cards LLC on the project Pinocchio Playing Cards, realized with the patronage of the Fondazione Nazionale Carlo Collodi, I have also started getting increasingly involved in the world of custom playing cards. In 2018, the project was awarded the Silver A Design Award in the category Toy, Games, and Hobby Products, the honourable mention of United Cardists as Best Aces and from the same organization, the third-place as Best Rookie Deck.
In 2020,
Pinocchio was followed by
Florentia Playing Cards, another set of luxury custom playing cards designed and produced in collaboration with Passione Playing Cards LLC.

Bold Playing Cards, my first solo playing cards project, was successfully launched on Kickstarter in August 2020. In November of the same year, Blue Jay Dentistry Playing Cards was released as the second instalment of the Meadowlark Playing Cards series. In September 2021, my work led to my nomination as Artist of the Year for the 2021 Diamond Awards, bestowed annually by 52 Plus Joker, the American Playing Card Club, and recognizing the top playing card designers in the industry based on their output that year. In February 2022, on the occasion of the Deck of the Year (DOTY) Awards held by Portfolio 52, Bold Playing Cards was elected Best Graphic Deck 2021. Additionally, 2022 marked the year of the Genoese Tarot, designed in collaboration with Jean Maillard. In 2023, the Rx Almanac playing card series designed for Meadowlark Playing Cards was awarded first prize as ‘Best Jokers, second prize as Best Overall Deck and Best Tuck Box, and third prize as Best Back Design and Best Aces at the annual DOTYs. 
Since the academic year 2020/2021, I have been teaching classes on playing card design, book design, and typography at the International School of Comics, Florence. In 2022, I established Brick Grove, a company devoted to producing playing cards and card games and preserving their historical and cultural heritage. With the same passion and purpose, I recently had the pleasure and honour of becoming the editor of The Playing-Card, the quarterly journal of the International Playing Card Society.
When I am not working on new designs or illustrations, you can usually find me playing the cello, reading a book, swimming, visiting an art exhibition (any art exhibition!), or having a drink with friends.
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