LCF Artist Honored at Montrose Art Walk Has 'Best Day Job in the World'

This article was posted by Donna Evans. It was reported and written by Craig Clough. 

Among the hundreds of works of arts displayed along Honolulu Avenue at the Montrose Art Walk recently was an oil painting of a lagoon with a purple "special award" ribbon hanging from it and blowing in the light breeze. 

The artist behind the work is Karen Winters, a longtime La Cañada Flintridge resident, and the ribbon was one of only two given out by the art walk judges at a reception at Whites Art, Framing & Restoration Gallery on Friday night. 

The special award signified her oil painting, "Song of Still Waters," as the runner-up for the show. It depicts a lagoon in the Santa Barbara area. 

"It was my newest painting, so I figured, why not enter it? I was very pleased to be recognized like that," Winters said. 

Winters has been a full-time, professional artist for the last eight years and said "it's the best day job in the world."

Many of the paintings she displayed at Saturday's art walk were of landscapes in Southern California. 

"People just love to have a memory of the places that are special to them. If someone loves Yosemite, they want to remember the first time they came through the tunnel and saw the whole expanse of the valley," Winters said. 

"They want to remember what Cambria looks like, they want to remember what the redwoods look like. And that’s a way to have that emotional experience with them in their home. And that’s why I think people really like landscapes, it touches their heart."  

Winters, who has participated for five years in the Montrose Art Walk, has lived in LCF with her family for 33 years. 

"We moved up here for the schools, the weather and the community and have never been disappointed. It’s a great place to live, I can’t imagine living anywhere else," Winters said. 

To view more of Winters' work or to contact her, go to www.karenwinters.com.

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