Artist Collaboration: An Interview with Maggie Chiang / @mcmintea

Just as the petals fell into the lake, the dragonfly fluttered in. Its wings tremble with every ripple in the water, like a gentle whisper in your ear. 

With every graze of the grass against your skin, you are reminded of how you exist. Despite the vastness of this world, here you are, sitting by the dancing tulips. 

Experience our sixth Artist Collaboration of the year with Maggie Chiang who has returned to design two new covers for us, Dragonfly, and Tulips.

Read on to take a peek at what she has to say about her second Mossery collaboration and more—

Hi Maggie, we love the new covers you designed for us! How does it feel to have your work grace the covers of Mossery again?

Hiya! Thank you so much, it’s such an honor to be able to create this new set of covers for you guys at Mossery. I’m really excited, and can’t wait for these covers to come out!

Could you tell us the inspiration behind these two covers, and the story you want to tell?

With these two new covers, I wanted to convey a dream-like scenery. A place where someone could escape and enjoy nature.

Since your works carry so much of their own narrative, could you tell us who is your favourite storyteller?

Growing up, I really enjoyed reading Roald Dahl’s whimsical stories. His stories were filled with so much imagination along with vivid imagery.

We notice they also share a similar essence with the previous two covers from our collection. Was the continuity a deliberate choice or did it happen naturally?

You know, while creating these two new covers, I was worried they weren’t going to look cohesive with the previous covers. I’m glad that you mentioned the similar essence, and I believe it just happened naturally. Maybe it has something to do with my artistic ‘voice’.

What kind of feelings do you hope to evoke from our customers when they hold these covers in their hands?

I hope they can create a sense of whimsy, joy, and inspiration. Something that you are happy or excited to see and want to dive into.

From our last interview, we talked about you doing digital art. Just out of curiosity, is there a particular digital tool that has fascinated you recently?

Haha, funny thing you ask! And I have a silly answer, currently it’s the lasso tool in photoshop. Recently for the digital drawings that I’ve been doing, I start with a solid shape.

Then, I like to use the lasso tool on the solid shape to block out an area for me to add a texture or a shadow. I think it’s just a fun tool to use, along with making the work flow a little faster.

Are there any up and coming artists that you’re personally following closely? We’re interested to see your interests!

Honestly, I am a huge fan of my friends. There’s Sally Deng, Leonardo Santamaria, Lisa Kogawa, AJ Dungo, Lina Yu, Alycea Tinoyan, Amy Matsushita-Beal, and there are so many more artists.

But I highly recommend checking these guys out, and the amazing work that they are doing!

Could you share with us a surprising source of inspiration? One that we won’t expect.

Hmm, that’s a tough question. I’m not sure if this is a surprising source of inspiration, but it’s my mini balcony garden. I’ve been spending a lot of time there, tending to my plants. And occasionally I take some pictures that I use to practice light and shadow.

Do you have any words of wisdom for aspiring artists out there?

I know that in these current times, it’s very tough and very much uninspiring. I think the best thing to do is just to keep pushing forward, and keep on making artwork. Create what makes you happy.

Trivia question! If you could immediately master any skill in the world, which one would it be and why?

Hmm, good question! I would like to master dancing. When I was young, I learned ballet but was honestly terrible at it. I was the least flexible in my class and probably not the most elegant with my movement, haha.

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Maggie Chiang is a Taiwanese American artist currently based in California. You can find her at @mcmintea on Instagram and her website here.

Dragonfly and Tulips from our second collaboration with Maggie Chiang is now available for Planners, Notebooks, and Sketchbooks.

Flutter with the dragonfly and dance with the tulips.

We just love the way these illustrations make us feel. So when you receive them, remember to tag us with your unboxing clip @mosseryco on Instagram so we can share it!