Kay Williams found her artistic calling in an unconventional way. During an evening art class in Portland, Oregon, in the late ’60s, Williams’ art teacher noticed her natural talent and asked her to teach oil painting the following year. She would go on to teach for 12 years. Her paintings of nature and wildlife, done in oil, mimic the techniques of the old masters, layering thin glazes of paint to build up depth and luminosity. Living in the Tennessee River Valley, Williams does extensive field research and spends three months each summer in the Black Hills of South Dakota, where she is an artist-in-residence with her husband, also an artist, at a local resort. She has been a featured artist is “Wildlife Art” magazine and appeared in numerous wildlife art exhibitions around the country.