Heritage Pointe of Huntington Resident Finds Beauty Wherever She Goes

Photography and oil painting are more than hobbies for Heritage Pointe of Huntington resident Marilyn Kaltenmark. They are ways of noticing beauty, preserving memories and sharing a little bit of joy with the people around her, including other residents of the senior living community and patients and staff at a local hospital.

Kaltenmark’s interest in art began when she was young, although opportunities to explore it were limited. Growing up in Zanesville, Indiana, Kaltenmark was one of 12 children, six girls and six boys. Her family did not have many extras, including cameras that might have allowed her to experiment with photography.

It was not until she was an adult that photography became a regular part of her life. Her interest grew as she began taking pictures of her three children. What began as a way to capture family moments developed into a longtime passion.

“Even when I was little, I was interested in art,” she says. “When we started having kids, I started taking pictures of my family and then one thing just led to another.”

Today, her favorite subjects to photograph are flowers and picturesque landscapes. Her preference for flowers has a personal connection.

“I love flowers. My mom did, too. I got it from her,” she says.

When she photographs flowers, Kaltenmark, 84, looks for beauty and perfection. She prefers color photography, drawn to the vivid shades and details that make each flower distinctive. Her photographs have often come from places close to home, from her own gardens and neighbors’ gardens to flowers she encounters while out and about.

She continues to pursue her artistic interests despite significant vision challenges. Kaltenmark has macular degeneration in her right eye and experienced a stroke in her left eye that resulted in partial vision loss. Rather than giving up photography and painting, she has learned to adapt her approach, paying particular attention to how light affects the colors she sees. She adjusts her pictures with her vision limitations in mind, finding ways to continue creating the images and artwork she enjoys.

She and her husband, Robert, who passed away in 2025, frequently took Sunday drives, and she would bring her camera along. Those outings provided opportunities to photograph the scenery they encountered along the way.

Her artistic interests extend beyond photography. Kaltenmark is also a self taught oil painter, an activity she describes as more creative than photography. She often begins with a photograph, using it as inspiration for a painting. Two of her paintings were based on flowers she noticed in photographs hanging in the hallways at Heritage Pointe.

She moved to Heritage Pointe about nine months ago and has found comfort in having people nearby who can lend a hand when she needs it, including maintenance staff who help her hang artwork to create a gallery of her work in her spacious one-bedroom home.

“They have been great at helping me do things,” she says.

Her artwork has found an audience both inside and outside Heritage Pointe. At the suggestion of Heritage Pointe staff, she displays two of her many photographs in the reception area, changing them every two weeks or so.

When Parkview Hospital of Huntington asked artists to submit their work for display in the hospital, Kaltenmark responded. Three of her photos now hang in the hospital, including one of a large yellow flower in the diagnostic waiting room, a picture of sunlight slanting through trees in a forest and another of a rustic log cabin displayed in a room where they draw blood.

“The lady who draws my blood says people comment on it all the time,” Kaltenmark says. “And she decorates it for Halloween and Christmas. She’ll put stickers of ghosts on it for Halloween. She asked me one day if that bothered me. I said, ‘No. I don’t care if it brings happiness to people, that’s great with me. I’m glad people enjoy it.’”

Knowing her artistic endeavors bring joy to others and focusing on the random beauty of everyday life are what she most enjoys about her photography and painting. Even as she adapts to changes in her vision, inspiration can come from almost anywhere: a flower in a garden, sunlight streaming through trees or a scene encountered during a Sunday drive.

It’s all about appreciating “the beauty of God’s work,” she says.