Meet Your Neighbor - MamaOZWAM

Me
 Who are you?
My name is April Fournier, my shop is called MamaOZWAM. It's a funny acronym of my kids names, meaning Mama O' Zevin, William, Asher, Mya. I sell digital prints of original collages I create. I like to take funky angles of the original collages and enhance the picture to make an interesting print. Each collage I create has a ton of possibilities for how it can be enjoyed, that's the fun part.

Tell us a little about your family.
I've been married for more than 10 years. We have four kids (Zevin (10), William (8), Asher (3), and Mya (3). The youngest are twins. I work full time and my hubby is a stay at home dad. He left work when we found out that Asher had autism last fall. He's awesome at being the coordinator, chef, maid, and teacher. We have the most fun just being together and being ourselves. We're very blessed.
My Brood

Where are you in Maine and what’s it like?
I live in Portland, I have always lived in the southern Maine area. It's gorgeous here. We live in the North Deering end of Portland and it's such a cool community. The school is good, the city is awesome, it's great in all four seasons.

Are you a native Mainer?  If so, what’s kept you. If not, what brought you here?
Me and my husband
I grew up in Maine and moved to Albuquerque when I was 13. I went to high school there and moved back here when Zevin was about a month old. We took a 3 day road trip in a beat up Geo Prism with no a/c to get back to Maine. I love the ocean. I love the sense of community. I love that I feel safe and that my kids feel safe. I love the seasons. I love the people. And I love the Italians!

How long have you been making your craft and what got you into it?
I have been doing collage work since I was in middle and high school. It's so fun to take odds and ends and create something new. I was most inspired by Nick Bantock whom I read in high school. His Griffin and Sabine series took collage art to a whole new level.

Ballooning Through Paris
Do you feel your craft is related to where you live?
I've just really started to get back into making things on a more regular basis. I think where I live and what I'm doing and my emotions play the biggest part in what I create. I'm hoping to do more work with Maine landscape this fall as the colors come out in the trees. I especially like doing watercolors of architecture so I'm hoping this winter I'll get to check out some of the old buildings covered in snow and recreate that for a collage.

How has being a part of the Etsy Maine Team helped you?
I just joined so I'm hoping to just get to know a larger group of people in my area that love to create.

Romina Butterfly
What are some of your favorite shops on Etsy?
I'm still exploring the Maine Team and hope to create a few treasuries with my favorite finds.

Where do you see yourself and your Etsy shop in the future?
I'm hoping that my shop becomes a nice side income that can help fuel my play dates with my older sons, coffee with my mom, shoes with DSW, and an overnight getaway with my love.

Where can we find you online and locally?
I'm on Facebook, I have a smugmug site for ordering prints and I'm here on Etsy. Thanks for checking me out!


Thanks April for sharing a little about yourself and how the wonderful state you live in helps you create!  
Be sure to check out all the other awesome Maine artisans on Etsy, by searching "maineteam."