Linda Marie Pace

Linda Marie Pace, artist, collector, philanthropist and beloved mother, died peacefully in her home on Monday, July 2. Pace was a former Aspen resident. She was born April 17, 1945, to David Earl Pace and Margaret Bosshardt Pace. A San Antonio native, Linda graduated from Saint Mary’s Hall High School in 1962 and earned a degree in fine arts from Trinity University.

Linda’s parents started Pace Foods, a small pickle, jelly and picante sauce business in 1948. In 1969, Linda’s husband, Christopher “Kit” Goldsbury, joined the family business and worked from the bottom up. In 1982, he and Linda purchased the company and successfully expanded it to national and international markets.In addition to her home in San Antonio, Linda also maintained a residence in Aspen. An active part of the cultural life of Aspen, she served on the national council of the Aspen Art Museum, as a member of the arts advisory committee at the Aspen Institute, and a member of the Anderson Ranch Arts Center.In 1995, Linda founded Artpace San Antonio, an internationally recognized residency and exhibition program that has awarded fellowships to more than 130 artists. She once described Artpace as a “laboratory of dreams – my own as well as the artists’.” After 12 years, Artpace has welcomed five MacArthur Fellows and four Turner Prize nominees into its exhibition program and brought its innovative education programs to more than 110 schools throughout South Texas.

Driven by the power of images, Linda also actively worked as an artist. She frequently captured ideas from her dreams in color-pencil sketches, and diligently gathered, cataloged and reworked familiar images into large assemblages. Her worked has been included in exhibitions in the San Antonio Museum of Art, the Blue Star Contemporary Art Center, and commercial galleries in Texas and Colorado.As a collector, Linda boldly fostered the work of today’s most adventurous artists and built an impressive contemporary collection which she generously shared with the public. Her collection focused on recent art which frequently expressed the turbulence of the times, although often veiled in poetic trappings.In 2005 Linda built a one-acre public green space called CHRISpark, in honor of her son, David Christopher (“Chris”) Goldsbury, who died in 1997. The park features a rhythmic layout of lush foliage and encounters with art. Respected contemporary artist Teresita Fernandez, an Artpace resident in 1998, conceived visual experiences which commemorate everyday occurrences. The park is privately maintained and open to the public.

She served on the national committee of the Whitney Museum of American Art, as a member of the International Women’s Forum, as a member of the artist selection panelist on the city of San Antonio Public Art and Enhancement Program, and as a member of the president’s council of the University of Texas Health Science Center, San Antonio. She received numerous awards for her visionary dedication to the arts, including the Woman of Achievement Award from the San Antonio Museum of Art, the Contemporary Legends Award from the Dallas Center for Contemporary Art, and the Ethel T. Drought Founders Award for Outstanding Contribution to the Arts from the San Antonio Art League. She is scheduled to receive the Ford Motor Co.’s Salute to Education award for arts education on July 17.Linda is survived by a loving family: her two daughters, Ava Marie Pace and Margaret Marie Goldsbury; her brother, Dr. Paul Pace, and his wife, Peggy; former husband Kit Goldsbury and his wife, Angela, and their son, Christopher. Other survivors include four nieces: Katie Pace, Maggie Boosalis and her husband, Mike, Alisse Dulaney, Monnie Emery and her husband, Cliff and their daughter, Christianne Emery; three nephews, Brad Pace, Mason Pace and his wife, Lindsey, Will Dulaney and his wife, Kim, and their children, Taylor and Addison. In addition, she is survived by sister-in-law Louise Dulaney; brother-in-law Robert Goldsbury and his wife, Cara, and their two children, Ben and Lauren Savage. She is survived by a cousin, Enid Engler, her devoted caregiver, Maria Pina, and her two children, Emanuel and Carolina Pina, and countless friends around the world who will dearly miss her.A memorial service for Pace will take place at 11 a.m. Saturday, July 7, at CHRISpark, 111 Camp St., San Antonio. A reception will follow at Artpace, 445 N. Main Street. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Artpace San Antonio or CHRISpark, 445 N. Main Street, San Antonio, TX 78205. Sign the guestbook at http://www.porterloring.com.