Linda’s work is a wild display of pattern, color, and texture through her paintings and ceramics. Her expressive language was inspired by Picasso and Matisse, as she emulates their usage of bright colors and their graphic style. Each piece of artwork whimsically takes us on a journey through her life and comments on present day social issues. Using the motif of bodies and heads she expresses the human condition through expressive detail. This characteristic makes her artwork relatable and approachable while still sometimes dealing with darker areas of the psyche.
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Linda pulls themes for her artwork from daily life, working organically from her subconscious to explore relationships with people and animals. References to the history of art from early Greeks to contemporary movements can be found in her works. Among her influences she lists Picasso, Leger and Matisse. Viola Frey, Robert Arneson and Northern California’s Funk movement have special significance in Linda Smith’s style.
Linda Smith’s art career spans over 30 years and includes paintings, prints, ceramics and mosaics. She has exhibited extensively and is the recipient of numerous the most recent being the coveted Juror’s Choice Award at 2015’s Ink and Clay 41 Exhibition. In 2006, Linda was the first artist (aside from Beatrice Wood) granted a solo exhibition at the Beatrice Wood Center for Art in Ojai, CA. Her work is part of the permanent collection at the American Museum of Ceramic Art in Pomona. She has been a featured artist in the gift shops of the Craft and Folk Art Museum, the Fowler Museum, and AMOCA.