I have spent a couple of weeks sleeping under the starry skies at Georgia O'Keeffe's Ghost Ranch in New Mexico, and toured her home in nearby Abiquiu. I rode by horseback out to some of the places where she sat and painted, and I have looked longingly at her beloved Pedernal. Here at home I have studied her art, have cooked a few of her recipes, and of course, I have read and written about her. So I thought I had a fairly good idea of who she was.
So I was pleasantly surprised at how much more I learned about her personality at the current Peabody Essex Museum (PEM) exhibit about her. My companion thought it odd to have so many of her outfits included in the show, but they really do communicate much about her. The show really conveys how very strong, unique and defiant O'Keeffe was, and how artistry was part of every aspect of her life, not just something shown in the well known paintings she produced. Here is how the PEM describes the show followed by my pics:
Georgia O'Keeffe: Art, Image, Style is the first exhibition to explore the art, image and personal style of one of America’s most iconic artists. O’Keeffe’s understated and carefully designed garments, many never before exhibited, are presented alongside photographs and her paintings, illuminating O’Keeffe’s unified modernist aesthetic and distinctive self-styling. For more than 70 years, O’Keeffe shaped her public persona, defied labels and carved out a truly progressive, independent life in order to create her art. Her aesthetic legacy — compact masses, organic silhouettes, minimal ornamentation, and restrained color palettes — continues to capture the popular imagination and inspire leading designers and tastemakers of our day.
Georgia's self designed and handmade wardrobe!
and here is Andy Warhol's take on G O'K.
So I was pleasantly surprised at how much more I learned about her personality at the current Peabody Essex Museum (PEM) exhibit about her. My companion thought it odd to have so many of her outfits included in the show, but they really do communicate much about her. The show really conveys how very strong, unique and defiant O'Keeffe was, and how artistry was part of every aspect of her life, not just something shown in the well known paintings she produced. Here is how the PEM describes the show followed by my pics:
Georgia O'Keeffe: Art, Image, Style is the first exhibition to explore the art, image and personal style of one of America’s most iconic artists. O’Keeffe’s understated and carefully designed garments, many never before exhibited, are presented alongside photographs and her paintings, illuminating O’Keeffe’s unified modernist aesthetic and distinctive self-styling. For more than 70 years, O’Keeffe shaped her public persona, defied labels and carved out a truly progressive, independent life in order to create her art. Her aesthetic legacy — compact masses, organic silhouettes, minimal ornamentation, and restrained color palettes — continues to capture the popular imagination and inspire leading designers and tastemakers of our day.
and here is Andy Warhol's take on G O'K.
