We were first exposed to Andi Seymour's art a few months ago while looking for information about the Haunted Hayrides. Seymour has been a cast member there for several years. The fantastic images she's created range from the cute anthropomorphic squirrel to frightening monsters and dragons that seem to be ready to fly off the page.

Q: Are you originally from Maine?

Yes. I have lived in Maine, in the same town in fact, all my life as it has thus far presented itself. I have no intentions of leaving either.

Q: Why do you draw?

I love drawing. It is something I have always done. Even when I shouldn't have, say in the middle of classes. It is a wonderful outlet for transposing imagination into a readily available sort of reality. Comes naturally.

Q: Why do you draw these kinds of things?

I ask myself that now and then, too. Especially when the end product is weird. I guess it is because I got bored of the everyday things that I used to draw. The world is full of pictures of real animals. Anyone can draw a cat and have it recognized as such, even if it is just a stick figure. Plus I have a very active imagination. Mythological animals have always been like a magnet. Naturally I started with the classics and broadened the spectrum from there. The one problem with that is having to explain. The public demands explanations. Someone asks, "What's that supposed to be?" More often than not I just shrug and reply, "I don't know. It just is". Then there is trying to separate my creatures from the modern trends, especially with the popularity of "furries". It comes with the territory. The only reason most of my creatures end up with names is because Elfwood requires titles. Thing #1 and Thing #2 gets old very fast.

Q: What other artists have inspired you?

From the start it has always been Beatrix Potter. I can remember my first school having a set of all of her stories. I would borrow those more often than anything else in the early grades just to look at the pictures.  I also like the works of Brian Froud, especially the things he came up with in conjunction with Jim Henson on projects such as The Dark Crystal and The Labyrinth. There is just something in his style that I love. With the aid of the internet I am slowly getting to find others through recommendations posted by other fantasy artists, but Potter and Froud are definitely my favorites. Quite a contrast in styles, huh?

Q: Do you take any inspiration from books?  Which authors?

Not as often as one would think, with the number of things I read. I love books! The Redwall series by Brian Jacques has sparked a few pictures. Grimm's fairy tales, too, just recently.

Q: What would you ultimately like to do with your art?

To illustrate children's books has been my strongest aim. My high school art teacher has always dreamed of having an award-winning student, so I guess that's where the notion springs from. I doubt I will ever get so far as to be awarded anything, but it sure would be fun to try. I draw mostly for my own enjoyment. If my art never makes it in the broader scheme of things I won't be too heartbroken.

Q: Do you have any formal art training?

Nothing beyond the high school level. My one weakness is that I have no real interest in pursuing further education just now. School was hard for me and really put me off of wanting more, even though I understand that it is a different environment.  I like what I do and how I do it, and having the chance do discover new things on my own is a wonderful experience, even if it means I will never go very far. I have one sister who is trying to become a writer, so I have at least one author who would be willing to take me on without a degree.

Q: Most of your drawings are of animals or animal-like subjects. Why? Have you studied animal anatomy?

No. I just feel more comfortable working with non-human subjects. I am trying to expand my abilities to include people as well, but for some reason the human face has always been a bother to render properly. That is something I have always struggled with. I collect animal skulls and hunt a lot, but that is as close to the study of anatomy as I have come.

Q: Do you only do pencil and pen? Do you do any color work?

I do paint a bit and occasionally work with colored pencils. It is the portability and readily available nature of graphite and ink that I like. I can pick up a pencil and paper and away I go. I have a sketchbook that travels almost everywhere with me, mainly to restaurants where I can draw while waiting for the meal to cook. One cannot really do that gracefully with paint.

I have to be in the right frame of mind to have a go at coloring. We run a wood stove all winter which makes the air very dry. So dry in fact that it sucks the moisture out of the paint in no time at all which can make the task of blending an aggravating endeavor. The phrase "watching paint dry" takes on a whole new dimension at that point. The rest of the year I am usually too busy with other things to get a good sit down to do coloring. It is a very neglected skill now, something I have promised myself to work on.

Q: Have you ever drawn professionally?

Define professionally.. I used to paint road signs for the local theater company and I have done a few posters for them, too. A sci-fi convention in Utah borrowed some drawings for PR flyers and an image which I reworked for a tee shirt design. There is also a small scattering of home based role playing game set ups that have requested pictures for their games. One or two cd covers that I have never seen...that sort of thing. I've never been paid for any of that, although the convention did have a barter system. The only thing with a paycheck involved is painting company logos on hermit crab shells a few times a year.

Q: Do you sell your work? Have you ever exhibited in galleries?

I used to sell painted rocks at craft fairs. The fad has rocketed in popularity with the professional crafters these last few years and I don't do that line quite so much. Its the same thing everywhere, although I'm fairly certain I am the only one with a cockatrice on a rock. Last summer I visited an exhibition and saw no fewer than three crafters doing the same exact thing at various levels of quality with prices that far exceeded what I had been charging. But, hey, they do this for a living. I just putter.  I did not even make it half way through the grounds so there may have been more besides what I saw. I still paint rocks for gifts and one last show where I know I will be more unique, but the craft fair thing has otherwise died with me.

On the other side of things, I don't sell my fantasy work so much. I would like to find a good print shop and try to sell prints because feedback shows some interest in what I can produce. A few commissions have come my way over the past few years. One time I traded a pomeranian on a rock and a watercolor painting for a concertina. Three more watercolors were produced because the first went over so well.

I know nothing of galleries. I don't think I am ready for that just yet.

Click here to see more images from Artist Andi Lee Seymour
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aroundmaine.com March 9 , 2005

Andi Seymour's Links Elfwood Gallery The Lair of Roving Blade