Westerville artist Janet Waggoner won the German Village Society's annual watercolor contest on Sunday. She will be paid $500 for her painting of Amy Weiss's and Michael Yemc's garden at their Lear Street home.

Theirs was one of the properties featured in last weekend's Haus und Garten Tour, and is one of a cluster of newer homes built on a former factory site, melding a historic look with modern conveniences.

"The backyards themselves are gorgeous; they are like little rooms themselves," said Waggoner. That was one reason she chose to paint the Weiss/Yemc garden, rather than the front of the house. The other reason was one of practicality.

"There was a threat of rain and watercolors do not do well in rain," she said. "They had a table set up and a big umbrella; that seemed like the best place to be."

"I mainly had to choose a view ... and chose one for the colors - the flowers were just beautiful," she said. "They have a paper birch, which has wonderful texture. And I showed a bit of the house since the brick work is indicative of German Village."

This year's contest was the third for Waggoner.

"It's the first I've won; I got third place last year," she said. "It's quite an honor."

Waggoner won a blue ribbon and will be paid $500 for her painting, which the GVS will reproduce and use in promotional materials this year.

Originally from Lorain, Waggoner has been a watercolor artist for 35 years; she specializes in house portraits and teaches small-group watercolor classes.

Her paintings have been used on greeting cards, including some honoring members of the military, and for "Kathy's Care Cards," which were developed by a Westerville nurse to support women with breast cancer.

"That's a really great thing she is doing," said Waggoner. "Four years ago, she was running in the Race for the Cure, and she wanted to get cards for the friends who she was running for. But nothing seemed just right, so she created her own."

Waggoner was chosen by the Ohio Bicentennial Commission to painted pictures of 39 of the county barns that were decorated for the 2003 Ohio bicentennial, and one year painted a portrait of the Ohio Statehouse for the governor's staff Christmas card.

She recently participated in the Worthington Arts Festival, and will display her work in the Westerville Art Show July 14-15 in Heritage Park.

She is married to John Waggoner, and the couple has three children and two grandchildren.

The watercolor contest has been around for about 30 years, said GVS executive director Katharine Moore. Each year, members of the Central Ohio Watercolor Society are chosen to paint the homes and gardens featured in the tour. They arrive early on tour day and names are drawn to decide who will paint each house. Then the artists set up shop and paint during the day as tour visitors come and go.

Moore said the watercolor contest adds a special something to tour day.

"The people going through the tour really like it," she said. "They talk to the artists and it gives them something to do while they are waiting in line.

" ... It's also interesting to see what people capture," she said. "Sometimes they do a doorknob or a roof."

The top four places are honored. Besides Waggoner, this year's winners are:

All three receive a $300 prize