Watercolor art by Cindy Kelm is on display in the Jensen Community Center’s display cases through November 14.

Kelm grew up on a farm in Oconto County, exploring the woods, lakes, and rivers around her home. It was there that she developed a reverence for nature and the natural world. From an early age, she found photography supported her interest in nature, and travel enhanced this love.

Having little opportunity to take any type of painting classes as a child, it took until her retirement as a school counselor to sign up for her first watercolor class. Since then, she has been sampling classes around the state, still working on techniques and understanding the play of watercolor pigments’ movement with water. Now she lives in Waupaca, and many of her painting subjects reflect this interest in nature, gardening, birds, hiking, kayaking, lakes, and rivers. Besides her own painting, she has tried to nurture her granddaughters’ artistic development, giving them periodic lessons with gifts of art tools and supplies.

“It’s wonderful to have watercolor as an artistic outlet in my life. Now I use photography to take photos of my future painting subjects,” she said.

Kelm can be contacted at (715) 412-0036 or kelmcindy29@gmail.com.