Georgia O Keefe: An American Modernist

Superior Essays
Georgia O’Keefe was born the second of seven children near Sun Prairie, Wisconsin on Nov. 15, 1887 (“Georgia O’Keeffe: About the Painter”). From the age of 13 (Stabb), she knew she wanted to become an artist, and she began her art career in 1905 by studying at the Art Institute of Chicago. She continued her education a year later at the Art Student’s League of New York. After working in Chicago as a commercial artist for a while, she moved to Texas to teach art (“Georgia O’Keeffe: About the Painter”). Eventually she became supervisor of art in Amarillo Texas public schools (O’Keefe, Georgia). While teaching in Texas, O’Keefe became frustrated with her own work and stopped paining. Her love of art was rekindled, however, after taking a class …show more content…
Her work contains both abstraction and realism, no one style rules, a pivotal characteristic of modernists. Modernists unified under the search for identity rather than a specific artistic approach, constantly questioned what it meant to be American Modernists, and pioneered post World War II abstractionism. O’Keefe’s husband championed American Modernism in a circle of artists that he showcased in a circle of artists that he showcased, featured, and promoted at his gallery. No doubt her proximity to such a large group of influential Modernists influenced her artwork. (Who Are the American …show more content…
The subject, a jack-in-the-pulpit flower is largely expanded and in a sharply focused close-up view (art through the ages). This extreme magnification abstracts the image, and highlights the very essence of the flower without the distraction of details. The lines in the painting are very curved, following the natural contour of the flower and draw the eye vertically. The flower is nearly symmetrical, drawing the eye to the center. The subject of the painting is colored in dark tones, while the background is light, drawing even more attention to the flower. There is no clear source of light, but O’Keefe’s shading does add depth to the flower, making it seem multi-dimensional. Overall, the painting is an excellent illustration of the oversimplified, large abstracted pieces that made O’Keefe

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