STERLING — The various pieces featured in artist Cindy Fedeli’s recent Sterling Senior Center exhibit are from her body of work Remembering COVID-19. The collection was inspired by the pandemic lockdowns in 2020, and it reflects how she was feeling at that point in time.

“I wanted to make art during that time that was freeing and nonrepresentational,” she said. “I began pouring paint on a canvas because I thought, there is no thought involved and I’ll just watch the magic happen.”

The results are unlike anything Fedeli created prior to that period — abstract, vivid artwork that draws the viewer in.

“Two years later, my studio is more like a chemistry lab. I am analyzing the chemical makeup of paints, how they interact and respond to each other, and how to create the perfect pour that is balanced in every aspect of the above as well as mixing the perfect consistency of the paint,” she said. “If you can make all that happen, each pour will be completely different in makeup, color and design.”

Once she has poured a piece she uses “a sealing technique,” coating each one with resin, a glasslike coating that creates a high gloss finish.

“This adds a translucent beauty and depth to each piece that makes the colors pop and the artwork more unique in its appearance,” Fedeli explained.

The artist grew up in Paxton and attended elementary school there. Her family moved to Sterling when she was 13, and after graduating from Wachusett Regional High School and several more moves, she returned to settle permanently in Sterling in 1991.

She said she began creating art as a young child and was drawn to author Kay Thompson's “Eliose” book series and would recreate drawings from them.

“Apart from my studies in school, drawing opened up a world around me that was different and unique,” Fedeli said. “Through observation, I learned how interesting every line, form, color and shape was in nature, and how they intermingled to create a world of beauty.”

When she became a mother, she said her “art pursuits had to be put on hold due to my responsibilities as a caregiver and provider.”

She began “reconnecting with that passion” when she retired several years ago and “even more significantly when COVID ended all outside contact.”

She started entering juried art exhibits after studying at the Worcester Art Museum in 1999, and her art has taken her all over New England. Her pastel and acrylic paintings were juried into several major New England art shows and one international show, and Fedeli won several top awards in many of those exhibitions.

In addition to the paint pouring technique, Fedeli is currently experimenting with the process of painting with resin, mixing the liquid glass with pigments and then painting with it.

“It is a very difficult and time-consuming process,” she said. “It requires using a torch to remove bubbles and a lot of babysitting to achieve a specific result. I have also begun adding a lot of mixed media items to my artwork. Many of the items I make out of resin, such as my resin crystals, half-dome mini resin pours, or other mixed media are added to the paintings to create more depth and interest. My newer painting ‘Cosmic Tulip’ is a perfect example of this.”

Fedeli said she is grateful to have had the opportunities to show her work in town, both through Sterling Arts Collaborative shows and more recently at the senior center.

“I am grateful to the Sterling Senior Center for giving the arts community an opportunity to showcase their work. COVID has forced a lot of art venues to display their art online only,” she said, adding that she sold three paintings through that show.

“Art, music, theater, or any creative endeavor is an important part of our brain’s development,” Fedeli continued. “I hope we always have access to these creative outlets and that they are shared by those with the expertise, time and talent.

"I thank God every day for the gift of art and for being able to observe the incredible gift of nature all around us.”

For more information and to purchase her art, contact Cindy Fedeli at 978-855-2675 or barefootandfree.fedeli4@gmail.com.