Ace of Trades: Linda Linham sees art as a way to communicate
COSHOCTON – She’s known by her peers as “a fantastic oil painter.” It’s a love she’s had since childhood.
“I learned to draw in grade school,” said Linda Linham, “winning an art instruction book and drawing materials as a result of entering a contest my mom found in the Sunday paper. Family, friends, teachers, receiving awards at the county fair all encouraged my artistic talent. But when I was selected to attend an art class given by local artist Vivian Williams and saw someone paint for the first time, I realized my passion for art and knew someday I would be a painter.”
Linham was in junior high when her family moved to West Lafayette. She graduated from Ridgewood High School, then Ohio University.
“Initially I was thinking about prelaw,” she recalled, “but still included art and design courses because they gave me a chance to do something I enjoyed. Although I loved art, it seemed more like a hobby than a way to make a living, so I eventually switched to business and marketing.”
She became a graphic designer, then sales manager.
“From there,” she said, “my career was a rollercoaster ride I never could have imagined. Always building on my strength of creativity, I served in various roles in the printing, publishing, advertising and marketing industries, including CEO, president, senior vice president, director of marketing, and eventually started my own business and marketing consulting company. I still do some nonprofit consulting work with art-related groups.”
While she used her creative talent in many of her positions, she also said her desire to paint was never satisfied.
“I finally started painting after I retired,” she said. “I kept remembering how I felt that first time I saw a professional artist work. It was magical. It was just something I had to do. It was a way to communicate that I had not experienced.
“The first few years,” she continued, “I did frequent workshops with national or internationally recognized painters to improve skills and techniques then began competing in exhibitions for awards and selling commissioned projects. I still practice, watch videos, follow experts and continually learn something about the technical part of painting. It takes more time than I have to become a really good painter, but I’m giving it my best shot. Learning the technical skills of painting keeps my mind working, and painting has been a great stress reliever over the past few years.”
Painting portraits is a major part of her work, though she “loves” painting landscapes and still lifes among other things.
“Not only is Linda a great person, always willing to lend a hand, she is a very talented painter,” assessed Jack Hunt, president of the Coshocton Art Guild. “Her work is full of color and emotion.”
“It’s been such a rewarding experience to see or hear people’s reactions to my work,” Linham responded. “I’m pleased they gave it the consideration of an opinion because that means I got their attention, may have stirred their soul, or touched their heart in some way. And that’s a powerful thing to accomplish for an artist.”
Linda Linham’s work can be seen at www.facebook.com/LindaLinhampaintings. Questions or comments are welcome through email at LLinham@gmail.com.
About the series
Aces of Trades is a weekly series focusing on people and their jobs – whether they’re unusual jobs, fun jobs or people who take ordinary jobs and make them extraordinary. If you have a suggestion for a future profile, let us know at ctnews@coshoctontribune.com.
This article originally appeared on Coshocton Tribune: Aces of Trades: Linda Linham sees art as a way to communicate
