BIOGRAPHY
Growing up in the 1950s in the San Francisco Bay Area surrounded by the ocean and redwood forests led Linda MacDonald to focus her artwork on nature and the environment. After studying painting for two years, she traveled to Europe to visit museums and city sites and then lived in New York City. European museums whetted her appetite for more academic schooling. She attained her BA in painting and eventually her MFA in textiles from San Francisco State University.
The call of the wild led her to live in rural northern California. Experiencing raw nature and a back to the land ethos, she spun wool, wove, and made quilts. She had much success with her contemporary designs in quilt making and in the 1970s through the 1990s had her work in many shows, won awards, and taught part-time at symposiums and colleges. Traveling to Japan and teaching through Japan Handicrafts, Inc. was a highlight of that time. She switched back to painting in oils because the medium facilitates the creation of images in a freer and more fluid way than with fiber. Nature, water, trees, and the wonder in the world continue to be her subjects of study.
