This week, I’m writing to you from upstate New York as I begin my three-week working vacation. I call it a working vacation because I’m doing a lot more work than I am relaxing! Let me take you back… way back… back 34 years to when I was a 23-year-old newlywed. In a leap of faith, I took a solo trip (leaving my new husband behind!) to North Salem, New York, to study with a legendary portrait artist I’d read about in American Artist Magazine. Daniel Greene was known internationally for his work, and his list of accomplishments even back…

After the announcement last week of the closing of Macy’s downtown store, I felt like I had to blog about that sad news and what it meant to me, so I postponed my original topic. This week, I’d like to share with you about the wonderful event I had at Kane Glen Hazel last Wednesday. “A Stroll Down Pittsburgh’s Memory Lane” was a glorious day spent with Kane residents, staff, and visitors. Other attendees were a group from the Alzheimer’s Association and some of the staff from KDKA. I was honored to see that Ron Cook from KDKA had decided…

This week, my blog was supposed to be about my amazing event Wednesday morning at Kane Glen Hazel, but when it was announced that the Downtown Macy’s (formerly Kaufmann’s) was closing forever, I knew there had to be a change in plans. When Macy’s announced this week that they were selling the building and closing their Downtown store, I’m sure that, like me, you were saddened at the loss of a lifetime of traditions. For me, it was always about the “Big Three,” Gimbels and Horne’s, but especially Kaufmann’s/Macy’s. Nothing compares to those holiday window displays along Fifth, Forbes, and…

Today I have a special invitation for you! On Wednesday, July 15th, the Kane Glen Hazel facility on Rivermont Drive will be hosting an exhibition of my paintings that is free and open to the public. Over the last year, I’ve partnered with Kane to create oversized versions of 20 of my paintings for the residence halls at the facility. The idea is for the residents to “walk down Memory Lane” and share their stories with everyone they meet. I am honored to have an opening there from 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. to share my own stories about the…

I have so much to share with you this week! I told you last week about our terrible experience with the storm at the Three Rivers Arts Festival. With the damage done to my tent and my art (not to mention done to ourselves!), I wondered if I would ever do an outdoor show again. But you know what they say… when you fall off the horse, the best thing you can do is climb back on and keep riding! That being said, I have a brand new tent that I’ll be setting up for the first time this weekend…

To say the least, my first year at the Three Rivers Arts Festival was certainly a memorable one! I love exhibiting at shows because I meet so many wonderful people, and I look forward to helping them find the perfect piece of art. However, in the past, I’ve always been hesitant to exhibit at the Arts Festival because of its history of stormy weather. I used to make the excuse of “that’s the time of year I’m painting,” which really was true. But for some crazy reason, I decided this year would be different, and I applied. I deliberately chose…

It’s been quite a week here at Linda Barnicott Studios! Not only have I been putting in a lot of studio time working on the Oakland Catholic commission, but I’ve also spent hours and hours this week huddled over my computer keyboard, updating my official bio. My bio needed some work for three reasons: One, my website was in need of an update; two, I needed a current bio for my new catalog coming out in July; and three, for a national press release that went out this week to 218 media spots across the country! This was the first…

Summer is here at last, and this week I dusted off my booth for my first outdoor show of the season, the Shadyside Arts Festival. (The festival has added a new Spring show in addition to their original August festival.) Despite a dire rainy forecast, we managed to stay dry up until the last 5 minutes. Then as we were loading up the van to come home, the heavens opened and sent buckets of rain! My favorite part of the Festival was getting to meet up in person with some of my friends and fans. My second favorite part, of…

I’ve been promising you a big announcement for a few weeks now… and the big day has finally arrived! “Shhhh!” – the first painting in my new “Jolly Old Elf” series of holiday Santa paintings has made its public debut. The original has already been sold to one of my favorite collectors. Here is what he had to say about the painting… “The painting, “Shhhh!” takes me back to my early childhood with my thoughts of Santa and who he was for me. The Santa in Linda’s painting is just the way I pictured him – jolly, warm, rosy cheeks,…

The one thing in life that is inevitable is change. This week marked the end of an era for me, and I wanted to share that very emotional moment in my life with you. It feels as if for my whole career I’ve been creating a painting each year for the American Cancer Society’s holiday cards, though actually, it’s only been 16 years since I started in 1998. I always felt it was a way of giving back to the community in gratitude for my art career. I have been so blessed to make a living doing what I love,…