Cat lovers are in for a treat. CatArt Cards has introduced an exquisite line of note cards featuring fine art portraits of cats. The finely rendered depictions, by artist Johnnie Scoutten, are almost photographic in their realism.

“It’s the eyes that are so intriguing. They are so expressive and reveal so much about personality and mood,” says the artist.

Johnnie confesses she had to put stickers on each package of cards saying: ”Look Closely. It’s Not a Photo!” During test marketing, Scoutten says, she had to convince people the cards were not photographs. “Conversations would start out asking if I took the photo.”

Scoutten says, but when she explained the portraits are tightly rendered in colored pencil, then the reaction was always, “Oh Wow!”

Johnnie Scoutten, fine artist and graphic designer, is not without inspiration for her CatArt Originals. She works surrounded by her own five cats who take turns vying for attention on her desk and claiming her lap. She created CatArt Cards to share her art with more than 88 million cat owner in the United States. “Penning a note to a friend, that arrives with an inscrutable cat face on the cover, is sure to brighten somebody’s day,” Scoutten says. “Cat lovers can’t resist the appeal.”

 Look closely .... it's not a photo!