Until I saw it for myself, I thought Georgia O'Keeffe exaggerated the landscape of New Mexico. Now it is my favorite landscape anywhere, especially the drive along the river on the way north from Santa Fe to Chimayo and the high road to Taos.
Born on a farm in Sun Prairie, Wisconsin, in 1887, Georgia O'Keeffe claimed that by age 10 she knew she would be an artist. From 1914 to 1915 she was in New York studying with artist and art educator Arthur Wesley Dow. Dow advocated a free, personally expressive approach to subject matter that was in tune with O'Keeffe's inclinations.
Right before you get to Ghost Ranch
In 1929 Georgia O'Keeffe spent her first summer in New Mexico. The openness of the Southwest was a welcome relief from the bustle of the city, which had begun to fail her as a source of inspiration for her work. She shared New Mexico with other notable figures of art at that time such as Mabel Dodge Luhan and Ansel Adams. In 1949 O'Keeffe moved permanently to New Mexico after her husband, Alfred Steiglitz, died. The rest is history.
PBS's American Masters series has a great presentation on O'Keeffe, another good online resource can be found here, and a good resource for children is from BrainPOP and found here.
There are many books available about Georgia O'Keeffe. My favorite children's book is My Name is Georgia, by Jeannette Winter.
The river that flows past O'Keeffe's Abiquiu home.
Now you can visit the Georgia O'Keeffe Museum in Santa Fe and perhaps join SchoolArts Magazine and CRIZMAC for our summer seminar, Desert Divas: Influential Women Artists and Patrons of the Southwest, New Mexico
July 3-10, 2014.
The stunning New Mexico landscape has attracted artists and patrons to the Santa Fe and Taos regions for years, including many remarkable women—both past and present. From the spectacular black pottery of Maria Martinez and the paintings of Pablita Velarde to the brilliant canvasses of Georgia O’Keeffe, the contemporary sculptures of Roxanne Swentzell, and the mixed-media of Marion Martinez, their works have had a profound impact on the art world.
Other innovative women such as Mabel Dodge Luhan, Millicent Rogers, and Mary Cabot Wheelwright were also at the artistic forefront, creating a living legacy in the arts through their patronage and museum development. We invite you to join CRIZMAC and SchoolArts Magazine on this extraordinary trip to explore the fascinating lives and legacies of all these “desert divas." Learn more here.
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