52Aces is a pack of playing cards, each one sporting a design by a different illustrator. The really great thing about it is that mostly it avoids the 'usual suspects' and has introduced us to some image makers we weren't hereto familiar with...

Without further ado, here's a selection of cards that caught our eye and links to the portfolio sites of the artists that created them:

Polish artist Roman Klonek is a fan of the woodcut. See more of his work at klonek.de

The four of diamonds is illustrated by Cape Town resident Bia van Deventer

Tel Aviv-based artist Jonathan Lax, aka YONIL, illustrated the "six of 'mother f**kin' clubs"

Pale Horse (from Tampa Bay, Florida) created this Chinese Dragon-inspired piece

Based in Berlin, illustrative duo Attila Szamosi and Lars Wunderlich are collaboratively known as Peachbeach

The nine of clubs was illustrated by London-based illustrator Helen Lang

And the nine of spades was designed by Chinese designer and illustrator Nod Young

Illustrating the Ace of Spades fell to British artist Pete Fowler of monsterism.net - one of the few illustrators in the pack who's work we were already familiar with

The pack is actually the second in an ongoing series created by design publisher Zeixs in collaboration with Mannheim-based design studio 12ender. It has been produced in an edition of 999, comes packaged in a tin box as shown above and is priced at €28. Find it (and see all of the card designs) at 52aces.zeixs.com.

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