Martha Saudek is a superbly accomplished artist. The quality of her work and the vivid, clear outlook of her paintings make both her age and her history rather a surprise, for Martha Saudek did not actually begin painting full-time until 1990. Following World War II, teachers were desperately needed in Californian schools and Saudek, having a degree in English from Pomona College, was in demand. Although at that time she had taken some art classes, she was convinced that she would not be able to make a living as an artist.

However, following her retirement she was able to give in to her drive for artistic expression. Although her aim at the time was merely to obtain personal satisfaction, she decided to begin with basic art courses at UCLA. In 1986, on an impulse, she entered two paintings in the San Fernando Valley Art Club's Spring juried exhibition - and walked away with 1st, 2nd and 3rd place awards. Thus began a marathon of exhibitions and awards, followed by extensive international sales. She has been an award winner in Grumbacher’s National Gold Medal competition and a Region III Top Winner of the National Arts for the Parks National Competition. She has exhibited at the Lincoln Center in New York, in the Capitol Rotunda in Washington DC and at the Natural History Museum in Los Angeles.

Photographs and text accompanying her paintings are also displayed in eight instructional art books. Her biography appears in Who’s Who in America and in Who’s Who in American Women. Saudek specialises in landscapes, but her subject matter varies. All her paintings contain full-bodied colours, whether they represent sunsets, wooded glens, waterways or snowy hillsides. Martha Saudek says, "I think my art career has kept me energetic. It is a tonic, a stimulant." She packs her many hobbies into her days, finding time to enter competitions, frame pictures, teach, travel and produce gourmet meals. Travelling around her country and the world to garner ideas for her paintings, she tries to "capture not only the physical aspects of the scene, but its emotional impact and the feeling I get when originally viewing it. These are the experiences I try to share with others."

Framed print Winterthur's Azaleas by Martha Saudek