GEORGIA ON MY MIND: A Visit to Georgia O'Keeffe's Home and Landscape

Georgia O'Keeffe's house and landscape have occupied our imagination almost as much as her paintings.

O'Keeffe left New York to take up residence first on Ghost Ranch and then in Albiquiu, New Mexico. I had a vivid image of what her surroundings looked like mostly through the black and white photographs of her in these settings.

What I found when I went there is that some images were remarkably accurate and others didn't tell the whole story.

I thought, for example, that her house was miles out in the desert in complete isolation. But, in fact, she lived in a small town not unlike the one I live in, with a school, a bunch of houses, and a general store. She lived on the edge of the town, so that her views, at least in one direction were not obstructed. This view, for example, could be seen from her bedroom. The road has been up-graded and is much used today. When she lived there it probably didn't have much traffic. Here is a painting she did of this road in winter.

The surrounding landscape is remarkably like her paintings.

Even parts of her house are represented in her work.

Before heading to her house I checked out the Georgia O'Keeffe Museum in Santa Fe, and was happy to find her paintbox and brushes.O'Keeffe used mostly Blocx paint, but also had Winsor and Newton and Grumbacher.

Around her house there were the proverbial bits of nature.

The famous elk horn under which she was photographed.

O'Keeffe's stone and shell collection.

And rustic door to her court yard.

What was more surprising was the interior of her house. It was completely modern with mid-century modernist furniture.

We weren't allowed to photograph it, but this skeleton of a chair was in the courtyard. For photographs of the interior check out this site: https://artistshomes.org/site/georgia-o%E2%80%99keeffe-home-studio

If you go: Order your tickets at the O'Keeffe Museum