Historic Batterson Barn tells story of its occupants, including fine artist Linda Adams

Linda Adams lives along the Red Feather Lakes Road and operates the Batterson Barn Studio & Gallery. It is certainly in a recognizable location near this iconic barn and only a dozen miles west of U.S. 287. Adams has created an extensive line of jewelry using a wide variety of stones, beads and wire. It is almost a case of one-stop shopping in her gallery.

Adams retired in 2003 after a three decade career in public policy and advocacy. Her job took her to all 50 states plus a number of foreign countries. It involved problem solving, policy analysis and team building. Adam’s education includes a bachelor’s degree in history from the University of California Los Angeles and a master’s in operations research and public systems analysis from the University of Illinois.

Her and her husband moved to the Livermore area from Boulder in 2006. No longer working in the corporate world, Adams was fired up and yearning to became a full-time professional artist using her talent both as a painter and as the creator of jewelry designs. (But she is anything but new at creating art – her first fair was an in 1969.) She now focuses strictly on wearable art. Success in the Livermore area has steered Adams to expand to 20 or more shows a year primarily in Colorado and Wyoming.

As an active member of the Livermore Woman’s Club, Adams was involved in producing “Among These Hills,” the first extensive history of the Livermore area. She contributed some of the chapters in this important work.

After her move to the Livermore area, Adams started working on the history of the Batterson Barn and the families that once lived on the property. This led to a great deal of effort to place this landmark on the National Register of Historic Places. Recently, she mounted a plaque about the Batterson and its history near the structure.

Adams spends a great deal of time adding fine details to her jewelry to enhance a specific stone. She keeps a wide selection of wire, stones and beads to give her the latitude she needs. To house her inventory of raw material, she purchased some map cases with its characteristic wide, shallow drawers. Her studio is part of her gallery, which is located in a well-furnished loft above her garage. She emphasizes that each design is unique and one-of-a-kind. She is open to commissions for those that want a piece to match a particular outfit. The selection of semi-precious stones include amethyst, agates, onyx, pearls, turquoise, coral, Red Creek jasper, tiger eye, aquamarine and many more.

The gallery is open seven days a week by appointment at 970-224-4567, 603 Mount Moriah Road, Livermore, CO 80536.