Cathy Porter
Linda has a true, creative drive. She started creating art at a very early age. Her family spent summers in a family cabin in Northern Minnesota on an island without any power, water, or, of course, TV. She spent her time drawing, painting, and even dug clay from the lake to model and sculpt. She learned to love nature and art.
She focused on art in high school, and then earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts at the University of New Mexico. Later in life she returned to the Minnesota River School of Fine Art to learn to paint in the manner of the Masters—classical realism. There she studied oils and watercolor, drawing, and sculpture. She eventually taught watercolor classes and sculpture of the head (bust) and horse sculpture. She has one permanent sculpture at the Santa Clarita Child and Family Center.
Linda and her husband Rick moved from Minnesota to Sun Lakes in 2013. She discovered the Sun Lakes Rock, Gem, and Silver Club while touring the shop facilities in Cottonwood. There was a lapidary class in session, and the instructor showed her around the shop and encouraged her to join the club. She found the classes terrific and the teachers very generous with their time, and always ready to help.
She learned lapidary, which involves cutting stones from slabs and fashioning them into a cabochon. She took Silversmithing One and made a pendant, and learned to solder and set a stone. Eventually, she made silver inlay bracelets. Please see a nearby article for some of her beautiful pieces. Linda has also taught silversmithing at the club.
Another part of the club includes rock hunting field trips where she’s found chunks of Jasper, Onyx, and other stones. The shops are equipped to cut large rocks into slabs, and cut and polish them. Imagine fashioning a beautiful piece of jewelry from something found on a hike!
She still paints and does plein air paintings when she travels or hikes. She has participated in the Art at the Lakes show several times. We look forward to seeing her work there when the show resumes. Linda is a true artist. To learn more about the club, check out the website slrgs.com.