Month: April 2023

You have a lot of wine-related designs. Tell us about your love of wine.
Yes, I do have a LOT of wine designs! It’s because of where I live. For the past 30+ years, I have lived in wine country CA.   It is beautiful and covered in vineyards, tasting rooms, and wineries.  It seems everything revolves around wine!  I wasn’t much of a “wine-er” to begin with, but when in Rome … Plus, there are always photo-ops driving through the beautiful vine-covered hills. One of my horse cards on Greeting Card Universe is also a wine label for a wonderful Grenache, Petite Syrah blend called Untamed at Shadow Run Vineyards.
Which of your card designs do you predict will be your best seller this year (2022 holidays) and why?

Now that is such a great question and I wish I had a good answer! Sometimes what I think is brilliant, really isn’t, and cards that I think are just okay sometimes really sell! So, I guess wine cards sell pretty good because you can attach humor with them.  But it probably is a little bit of a niche market because not everyone drinks, or drinks wine. Horses always seem popular, just because they are such beautiful creatures!  But this year, I think the dolphins and Santa will be the best because I believe everyone thinks dolphins are kind of special. P

We also see many horses, dogs, and cats in your designs.  Are any of the featured animals your own pets?
Yes, they all are, and they are all tired of the camera! My horses, I torture early in the morning, to get the sunrise behind them. To get them to pose, I have to place their hay in certain spots on a hill to get the silhouette. It is usually dark and very cold when we start this process but sometimes yields some nice photos. Not always though, as horses aren’t always known for cooperating.  My beautiful dogs, some that have passed on, have all been my loving subjects. And it is really neat to have my ones that have passed, live on in the pictures on the cards. Cats, too, although I have only one cat right now. He was saved from a wildfire in 2020. My friend was working the fire and brought him by.  His name is Smokey, because of the fire, and he is, well, kind of feral and a jerk but he did pose for a Halloween card! Kind of fitting for his wicked little personality!

Ok, now for the fast five, fun questions …  
What is your hidden talent?
Okay, I know this may sound weird, but I can find any public bathroom, anywhere.  I just can. 
If you were a superhero, what would your superpower be?
Invisibility, which, unfortunately, speaks to my level of sociability. 
What’s the strangest family tradition in your family?
I am not sure if it is strange, but we would hand down ID’s. I had 3 sisters, and as soon as one of us hit 21 they would get a new id and give the old id to the younger one, and so on, so we could get into drinking establishments. We looked similar enough to pull it off. This was back when it wasn’t as strict as today.  Probably not too wholesome and it may explain my abundance of wine cards

What’s your most embarrassing moment from your teen years?
Getting my tongue stuck in a bottle.  Don’t ask. 
What was your first paid job?  What did you love or hate about it?
Cleaning horse corrals. I started when I was 7. Traded for horse board.  There wasn’t a lot to like about it, but it did let me have a horse!

Mothers Day Grandmother Azalea Pink and Magenta Flowers Custom card

Please list the URLs of your 3 favorite cards in your storefront and why they are your favorites.

This ostrich art birthday card is a favorite because the bird portrait is quite whimsical and I feel the design came together well with my text. I also appreciate that it can be customized for any recipient.

This daisy encouragement card appeals to me because it has such a cheerful look and message but it may also be customized to suit the needs of the buyer.

This blank note card with winter berries is a favorite because it features seasonal artwork that I particularly love and also for the design’s versatility. The inside may be customized for Christmas or for any wintertime event.

Please list any of your professional social media sites.

mmandersonart on Instagram

MMAnderson Art on Pinterest

MMAndersonArt on Facebook

MMAnderson Art on Twitter

MMAnderson on Mastodon

What was your inspiration for your winning card? Please walk us through the process of how these cards went from ideas to greeting cards.

I generally create the artwork first. I was inspired to do the azaleas in soft pastel after photographing the early blossoms in my own garden this spring. I always find the vivid magenta color of these shrubs striking when they appear after the drab winter season. These spring flowers with their delicate appearance and pretty pink hues, I felt, would lend themselves well to a Mother’s Day design.

What sparked your interest in art? Did you start as a young child?

As a child, I did enjoy drawing but I did not become serious about art until I attended college and found myself trying to decide on a path that would make the most of my talents. My work has always been inspired by a love of nature and a desire to capture something of the way in which I see the world.

Do you have formal training or are you self-taught?

I have a BA in art from the University of Lynchburg in Virginia.

Is your work done by hand and then scanned or do you work entirely on the computer?

I do most of my artwork by hand in soft pastel and then scan it for use at my various websites. Occasionally, I also do some graphic artwork on the computer but my heart is really with the traditional media. After I have the image saved on my computer I then tweak it in Lightroom to get the colors, contrast, etc. as close as possible to the original and clean up any scanner lint. I design my greeting cards in Adobe Illustrator utilizing my artwork image and choosing fonts and colors that I feel will work well with it. Finally, I export the card designs as jpeg files for upload.

Have you ever/do you currently have a job other than as an artist?

Originally, I had intended to teach art, but that never became a reality. Before I decided to try a full-time art career around a decade ago, I used to do data entry in an accounting office.

What GCU artist(s) do you admire?

I admire all of the GCU artists because I know how much dedication it takes to create beautiful, unique designs that will meet the review standards.

Looking at your storefront, which is your favorite subject matter: flora or fauna?

It would be difficult for me to choose between flora and fauna as a favorite subject. I love working with both. I feel that alternating between the two keeps the work interesting for me. White flowers are a favorite subject of mine as well as birds of various kinds.

What would we be surprised to learn about you?

Folks might be surprised to learn that, even though I currently live in a small town not far inland from the coast in South Carolina, I was born and raised in Central Virginia within sight of the Blue Ridge Mountains and I miss them. I’ve never come to appreciate the flat coastal plains, wetlands and beaches, as beautiful as they may be and where I have lived for nearly three decades, as much as the hills and valleys of the Blue Ridge.