Artist of History: Georgia O’Keeffe, Visionary of American Modern Art and the Southwest

Georgia O’Keeffe stands as one of the most influential figures in 20th-century American art, celebrated for her bold and imaginative transformation of the natural world. Through a career that spanned over seven decades, she redefined the boundaries of modernism, distilling flowers, bones, and landscapes into striking compositions that continue to captivate audiences today.

Emerging at a time when abstract expression was still in its infancy, O’Keeffe’s ability to translate personal emotion into visual form marked her as a pioneer of American modernism. Her early charcoal drawings revealed a fascination with shape and rhythm, laying the groundwork for a body of work that would evolve into vivid explorations of colour and space.

Yet it was the American Southwest that truly ignited her artistic voice. The desert’s wide skies, rugged mesas and sun-bleached relics offered a spiritual and visual landscape unlike any other. From her iconic close-ups of flowers to the haunting imagery of animal skulls and arid hills, O’Keeffe created an artistic language that was both deeply personal and universally resonant.

This blog traces her journey from her formative years as a student and teacher, to her transformative move to New Mexico, and finally, her enduring legacy as a visionary who shaped the course of modern art.

I. Early Life and Education

Georgia O’Keeffe was born on 15 November 1887 in Sun Prairie, Wisconsin, a small rural town surrounded by farmland and open skies. Growing up in the vastness of the American Midwest, she was naturally drawn to the landscape and the rhythms of rural life. These early impressions of sweeping fields and changing light would become recurring elements in her later work, where space and stillness played central roles.

Encouraged by her parents and teachers from a young age, O’Keeffe pursued art with determination and curiosity. In 1905, she began formal studies at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, one of the leading art schools in the United States at the time. There, she trained in traditional techniques including still life and figure drawing, earning recognition for her skill and discipline.

In 1907, she moved to New York City to attend the Art Students League, where she continued refining her craft. The city offered a new energy and exposure to modernist movements, though her early education was still rooted in realism. It was during this time she met photographer and gallery owner Alfred Stieglitz, whose influence would later prove pivotal in shaping both her career and personal life.

These formative years laid the groundwork for O’Keeffe’s evolution as an artist. Though she would later break away from academic conventions, the rigour and training of these institutions helped shape her understanding of form, structure and visual storytelling.

III. Radical Abstraction with Charcoal

Georgia O’Keeffe’s journey into abstraction truly began around 1912, a pivotal moment in her artistic development. During this period, she moved decisively away from representational art and embraced a new approach that foregrounded emotional resonance and visual rhythm.

Influence of Arthur Wesley Dow

While at the University of Virginia, O’Keeffe encountered the teachings of Arthur Wesley Dow, whose radical approach to art education challenged traditional notions of realism. Dow encouraged students to focus on elements such as composition, balance, line, form, and mood, rather than literal depiction. Deeply inspired by this philosophy, O’Keeffe began to view art as a means of expressing her inner world. She believed that through the manipulation of line and shape it was possible to suggest emotional landscapes and spiritual experiences. Dow’s ideas unlocked her interest in finding visual harmony, leading her to experimental studies in abstract form an essential step that would define her unique style.

Early Experiments in Abstraction

Between 1915 and 1916, while teaching in South Carolina and later in West Texas, O’Keeffe created a series of abstract charcoal drawings that marked one of her most daring creative leaps. These compositions feature sinuous curves, intense tonal contrasts, and fluid forms that evoke natural phenomena: the swell of a hill, the drift of cloud, or the swell of a petal. Works such as Drawing XIII and Drawing With Yellow are particularly striking they foreground the rhythm of line and the tension of negative space. These drawings seem to vibrate with energy, encouraging viewers to experience the underlying essence of nature rather than its surface appearance.

O’Keeffe described this period as liberating, calling the work a set of intuitive explorations. She often produced them in solitude, responding directly to her surroundings without preconceived plans. The charcoal allowed her to create immediate marks and build up rich blacks and greys. Viewers said the drawings felt like music translated into visual form, and O’Keeffe herself perceived them as a kind of language that spoke to her most deeply felt experiences.

Exhibition at Gallery 291

The true turning point came in 1916 when Anita Pollitzer, a close friend and early supporter, introduced ten of O’Keeffe’s charcoal drawings to Alfred Stieglitz at Gallery 291 in Manhattan. Stieglitz, initially more known for photography, was immediately struck by the originality and emotional power of the work. He bought several pieces and organised an exhibition of O’Keeffe’s drawings that April. In his introduction, he called them “pure” and “sincere,” flattering many established modern artists of the time. This exhibition not only launched O’Keeffe’s professional career but also positioned her at the centre of American avant-garde art.

The exposure at Gallery 291 brought O’Keeffe into contact with an influential network of artists, patrons, writers, and intellectuals. Her work began to appear in magazines and journals associated with modernism, prompting critical conversation. Looking back, O’Keeffe described this time as “turning all of my life around,” marking both a formal breakthrough and an emotional one. It was here that she began to define art on her own terms, creating work that spoke from the inside out rather than to meet public expectations.

IV. Evolution into Oil and Precisionist Modernism

Georgia O’Keeffe’s transition from charcoal to oil painting marked a turning point in her creative journey. She retained the flowing forms and expressive lines that defined her early abstractions, but now introduced the emotional depth of colour. Her distinctive style evolved into something both lyrical and highly structured.

Transition to oils

Building on the visual language developed in her charcoal drawings, O’Keeffe moved into oil painting with confidence. One of her landmark works from this period is Blue and Green Music (1919–1921), which captures her belief that music and visual art could share a common rhythm. The composition’s undulating waves of blue and green feel like a melodic sequence translated into visual form. With this piece, she was not simply painting music, she was embodying it. It marked her emergence as a key voice in American modern art.

Blue and Green Music became one of the earliest examples of how she used colour to evoke emotion rather than describe reality. This approach signalled a commitment to abstraction that was personal, intuitive, and formal all at once.

New York skyscrapers and American modernism

In the 1920s, after moving into a high-rise apartment in New York City, O’Keeffe began depicting the skyline around her. She was captivated by the geometry of buildings and the interplay of light and shadow across architectural surfaces. Her cityscapes, including Radiator Building Night, New York (1927), reflect a sharp contrast to her earlier organic abstractions. These paintings show the influence of Precisionism, with their crisp edges, clear lines, and machine-age aesthetics.

Yet O’Keeffe’s skyscraper series retained her signature sensitivity. The buildings aren’t just steel structures; they seem to hum with emotion. She offered a new perspective on urban life at a time when few women artists tackled such themes. Her work was a radical reimagining of what modernism could look like, and who could define it.

An enduring modern voice

Through this phase, O’Keeffe demonstrated how abstraction could be both deeply personal and visually disciplined. Whether painting musical forms or urban structures, her oil works from the 1920s reveal an artist in full command of her vision. She did not seek to copy the world around her, but to interpret it with honesty, elegance, and emotional truth. These works helped cement her status among the leading figures of American modernism and continue to resonate with audiences today.

V. The Southwest Transformation: New Mexico and Beyond

Georgia O’Keeffe’s arrival in New Mexico in 1929 marked a watershed moment in her career. The rugged beauty of the desert, with its dramatic landscapes and ancient structures, awakened a new kind of inspiration. Her artistic identity became intertwined with this place, and her vision evolved in ways that would define her legacy.

First encounter with the desert

On her first trip to New Mexico, O’Keeffe was drawn to the stark beauty of Ghost Ranch and the Taos region. The sun-bleached earth, mesas carved by wind, and adobe buildings left an indelible mark on her imagination. She began sketching and photographing these encounters, often incorporating animal bones found in the desert into her work. These humble desert elements became powerful symbols in her paintings a combination of life, decay and the eternal essence of nature.

Her early desert imagery captured the contrast between vast empty spaces and visceral detail. In her watercolours and sketches, she sought to distil the desert’s essence. The landscape’s scale and silence seemed almost sacred to her, giving her work a contemplative depth that diverged from her earlier abstractions and cityscapes.

Symbols and themes of New Mexico

From 1929 onwards, O’Keeffe’s signature subjects began to emerge: magnified flowers, bleached animal skulls and dramatic desert vistas. Take, for example, Ram’s Head, Blue Morning Glory (1938). In this painting, she paired the stark whiteness of an animal skull with the delicate curves of a morning glory flower. The skull and blossom appear almost abstract, set against a rich cerulean background. The work is both austere and sensual, evoking the harshness and resilience of the desert, as well as the fragile beauty found within it.

Similarly, her magnified floral works giant close-ups of petals and stamens explore form and colour through a deep concentration on detail. These paintings are not merely botanical studies: they transform botanical elements into abstract universes, echoing O’Keeffe’s ongoing fascination with inner landscapes.

Travels beyond the Southwest

While New Mexico remained her anchor, O’Keeffe also journeyed abroad, expanding her artistic vision. She visited Peru, Japan and Hawaii, each trip weaving fresh visual threads into her work. In Japan, Mount Fuji became a subject of careful study in several watercolours, demonstrating her reverence for natural landmarks. Still, it was in New Mexico that O’Keeffe found her ultimate voice. In 1949 she made Abiquiu her permanent home, and the light, terrain and spirit of the place remained central to her art until her death.

By embracing the desert, O’Keeffe created a visual language that merged abstraction, symbolism and place. She revealed how an artist could use the landscape not just as a backdrop, but as a living character within the work a powerful agent of meaning.

VI. Legacy: Gallery Recognition, Museums and Scholarship

Georgia O’Keeffe’s influence on modern art is reflected not only in her evocative works but also in the recognition, exhibitions and scholarly attention she continues to receive.

Exhibitions and awards

Throughout her life and beyond it, O’Keeffe’s work has been celebrated in some of the most prestigious art institutions. She held solo exhibitions at the Museum of Modern Art in New York, where her exploration of abstraction and colour was showcased to wide acclaim. The Art Institute of Chicago also featured her work, including Blue and Green Music, reinforcing her status as a leading figure among modernists. Major retrospectives at the Whitney Museum further cemented her reputation, drawing attention to her evolving vision and profound contributions. Critics and historians often refer to her as the ‘Mother of American modernism’, a title that honours her pivotal role in shaping twentieth‑century art culture.

Georgia O’Keeffe Museum

In 1997, the Georgia O’Keeffe Museum opened in Abiquiu, New Mexico. Located near her favourite landscape, the museum is dedicated to preserving her life and work. It holds thousands of pieces including paintings, charcoal drawings, sketchbooks and personal letters. Visitors can explore exhibitions that span her entire career, from early experimental works to her revered later pieces. The museum serves not only as a heritage site but as a research centre supporting exhibitions, publications and educational programmes focused on her artistic legacy.

Academic and public reevaluation

Recent decades have seen a wave of renewed interest in O’Keeffe’s contributions, fuelled by scholarship that expands our understanding of her artistic complexity. Academics now pay deeper attention to her early abstract charcoal drawings and the radical formal strategies they embodied. Feminist art historians have re-evaluated her independence and autonomy in a male‑dominated art world, exploring her approach to gender and power. Public interest, spurred by popular books and films, continues to revive her story for new generations highlighting not only her visual achievements but also her self‑determined path as a woman artist in America.

Through exhibitions, scholarship and institution‑building, Georgia O’Keeffe’s legacy remains vibrant. Her work continues to inspire artists, critics and audiences, demonstrating how one person’s vision can shape cultural narratives for generations.

VII. Thematic Signature Across Her Career

Georgia O’Keeffe’s artistic journey is marked by recurring themes that evolved and deepened over time. These threads of abstraction, spirituality, and personal autonomy define her unique contribution to modern art.

Abstraction and Nature

From her earliest charcoal drawings to her later oil paintings, O’Keeffe maintained a remarkable balance between abstract form and representational content. Her early charcoal works focused on line, rhythm, and contrast elements found in nature without directly mimicking it. When she transitioned to oils, those same curvilinear shapes reappeared in flower blossoms, animal skulls, and desert landscapes. Each painting carried a visual poetry: petals unfurled across the canvas in a dance of colour and light, while skulls hovered like monoliths set against vast skies. By isolating natural forms and magnifying them, O’Keeffe transformed organic subjects into abstractions that celebrated detail and design.

Spiritual Connection

For O’Keeffe, nature was not just a visual reference it was a spiritual instrument. She spoke of the desert as a place where time slowed and the “light comes on the plains” revealed hidden truths. Skulls in her paintings symbolised death but also the endurance of form and structure. Flowers, too, became vessels for resilience and regeneration. Her solitary desert scenes, whether cliffs, clouds or bones, were imbued with quiet reverence. These works resonate on an emotional level, inviting viewers to find spiritual meaning in natural phenomena.

Autonomy as a Woman Artist

Perhaps most striking is O’Keeffe’s unwavering independence. She managed her artistic career with care, making decisions that prioritised creative freedom over commercial pressure. She chose her subjects, her living environment and when and where to exhibit her work. Living and working alone in New Mexico, away from urban art scenes, allowed her to nurture her own vision. She resisted being defined by her relationships with male artists or institutions. In doing so, she established a model of artistic self-determination an empowering example for women artists that continues to inspire.

In this way, O’Keeffe’s thematic signature spans form, faith, and self-reliance. Her work remains a testament to the idea that art can arise from personal conviction and a deep love of the natural world.

O’Keeffe’s Enduring Influence

Georgia O’Keeffe’s artistic journey is one of extraordinary vision, resilience and independence. From her early beginnings as a teacher and commercial artist to her rise as one of the most influential figures in American modernism, she reshaped how nature, form and identity could be portrayed on canvas. Her ability to move beyond the confines of traditional realism, embracing abstraction while still drawing deeply from the natural world, positioned her as a bridge between past and future in the art world.

Her deep bond with the American Southwest transformed not only her subject matter, but also the emotional and spiritual language of her paintings. In the vast skies, sun-bleached bones and desert flowers, O’Keeffe found a visual language that was both deeply personal and universally resonant. Her works are more than compositions; they are meditations on light, form, solitude and inner strength.

O’Keeffe’s legacy continues to resonate powerfully today. She is not only remembered as a pioneering modernist, but also as a woman who carved her own path, maintained creative control and defied the limiting expectations of her time. Her life stands as a model of artistic autonomy and integrity.

If you haven’t explored her work in depth, now is the time. Visit the Georgia O’Keeffe Museum in New Mexico, explore permanent collections at the Art Institute of Chicago or the Whitney Museum, or take a virtual walk through her Abiquiú home and studio. Each brushstroke tells a story of defiance, wonder and discovery.