Since kindergarten, Linda Perry knew that she wanted to be an artist. She got distracted and went to U.C. Berkeley where she received her degree in mathematics. While there, she supported herself as an illustrator for the Botanical Gardens and the botany department. Elements of math and botany are ever present in her work. Perry’s favorite gem is opal, which she combines with gold and silver, pearls, tourmalines, garnets, peridot, coral and other stones, depending on the project.

“My design process is much like making a collage. I play with the stones until a composition intrigues me. The biggest challenge is staying open to changes as I fabricate the piece. I love the making of it: the sawing, the annealing, the stone setting and especially the soldering. Even after all these years it still feels like magic to me when two pieces of metal bond under the heat of the torch.”

Perry received her jewelry and metalsmithing training at Arrowmont, Gatlinburg, TN; Penland School of Crafts, Spruce Pine, NC; The New Approach School, Franklin, TN and Metalwerx, Waltham, MA.

Perry’s work has been recognized with a professional development grant from the Massachusetts Cultural Council and two fellowships: one from the National Endowment for the Arts and the other from the Massachusetts Cultural Council.

Her work appears in private and public collections throughout the United States including Rhone-Poulenc Rorer Corporate Headquarters, Collegeville, PA; DeCordova Museum, Lincoln, MA; Peace Museum, Chicago, IL and The White House, Washington, DC (Christmas ornament by invitation).

Selected juried and invitational shows where she has exhibited include:

CELEBRATORY ADORNMENT Mobilia Gallery Cambridge, MA
SURFACE: FORM/FUNCTION Arrowmont Gatlinburg, TN
4000 YEARS OF JEWELRY DESIGN Mobilia Gallery Cambridge, MA
CRAFTS NATIONAL Penn State University Park, PA
FULL DECK Renwick Gallery at the Smithsonian Washington, DC
HOYT NATIONAL Hoyt Institute New Castle, PA
RECENT ACQUISITIONS DeCordova Museum Lincoln, MA
WINTER EXHIBITION Design Pavilion San Francisco, CA
NASA EXHIBIT Moffett Field, CA
THE DOMESTIC OBJECT Berkshire Museum Pittsfield, MA
THE TWO COLLECTION WGBH Channel 2 Boston, MA
SOLO EXHIBIT Massachusetts Cultural Council Boston, MA

Perry’s work has been featured in American Craft, American Style, The Crafts Report, Boston Magazine, The Boston Globe, Better Homes and Gardens and other publications.