Linda S. Baker

Linda Sylvia Baker, who grew up in Montauk, died on Friday at her home in Cutchogue at the age of 55. She had suffered from back problems and diabetes, said her husband, Paul W. Baker.

Ms. Baker was an artist who created pencil drawings depicting nature scenes. She loved the water, particularly the ocean, her husband said, having grown up near it. Her family moved from Glen Cove to their Leisurama summer home when she was a teen, and she graduated from East Hampton High School in 1978. One of her first jobs was in the ticket booth for Montauk’s Viking Fleet.

More recently she was a homemaker and focused on her art. She was fond of cats and excelled at cooking, her husband said, and they enjoyed boating and traveling together. She was also a big NASCAR fan, he said, particularly of Jeff Gordon and the Pocono Raceway.

Born in Oceanside on April 8, 1959, her parents were Louis Alfred Sylvia and the former Concettina Norma Gigliotti. She lived in Las Vegas and Denver for a time before moving to the North Fork in her early 30s. A divorcee, she met Mr. Baker while living in Southold and they married in 1993.

In addition to her husband, she is survived by two stepsons, Eric Baker of East Providence, R.I., and Paul Baker III of North Attleboro, Mass. She also leaves two sisters, Louann Sylvia of Manorville and Maria Sylvia of Lake Ronkonkoma. A half-sister, Dorothy Schlegel, and a half-brother, James Sylvia, both live in Massapequa. Her parents and a brother, Louis Sylvia Jr., died before her.

The family is receiving friends from 7 to 9 tonight at the DeFriest-Grattan Funeral Home in Southold, where a wake was held yesterday. Ms. Baker was cremated, and her ashes will be scattered over the water. Memorial donations may be directed to Stony Brook Children’s Hospital, 100 Nicolls Road, Stony Brook 11794.