Monday, June 21, 2010

For Georgia O'Keeffe fans

Those who love the work of Georgia O'Keeffe might like to take a look at today's posts on two of my other blogs.  These are:
Buy at Art.com
Red Hills with Pedernal, 1936
Georgia O'Keeffe

Those of you who were not reading this blog back in June 2007 won't have seen the series of posts I did that month for my Georgia O'Keeffe project - see Making A Mark - The Georgia O'Keeffe Project.
I have a problem with posting her images in this blog. Basically since she's not been dead for 70 years her work is not copyright free and in the public domain. However her drawings and paintings of flowers are extremely popular which means that there are lots of images on the web which can be linked to - try googling Georgia O'Keeffe and you'll see what I mean!
These are also listed below:
Making a Mark: Georgia O'Keeffe Month: Macro Flowers
I adore flowers and images of flowers and enjoy the process of developing artwork based on a flower or flowers as much as looking at the end result. In developing my own work I've become increasingly drawn to the notion of exploring the flower through focusing on the structure of a single bloom. I now want to see how I can develop further and this is what this month will be all about. Naturally, in wanting to learn more about how best to do this, I've become very interested in the work of Georgia O'Keeffe - hence Georgia O'Keeffe month!
Making a Mark: Kew Gardens in June
I can highly recommend Kew Gardens in June. Yesterday it was full of flowers associated with Georgia O'Keeffe - arum lilies, poppies and irises. Kew also has a great glasshouse which has wonderful orchids which are another favourite O'Keeffe flower.
Making a Mark: Georgia O'Keeffe month: Two white irises (and three buds)
As you know I've been hunting down useful books for my Georgia O'Keeffe month. On Friday, I bought "Georgia O'Keeffe Museum Collections (Volume 2)" by Barbara Buhler Lynes at Kew Gardens. Having now had a chance to look through this book - which is the right way to describe a book which is mainly full page plates of colour images of her work - I've come to a few conclusions. These are offered here by way of guidance to anybody who wants to participate in the project this month.
Making a Mark: Georgia O'Keeffe Month: Cactus and quotations
I've included some quotations from Georgia O'Keeffe which I copied down when I visited the Georgia O'Keeffe Museum in Santa Fe last year.
Making a Mark: Georgia O'Keeffe Month: Learning about Notan #1
I'm trying to get to grips with Notan - using "Composition" the book by Arthur Wesley Dow, first published in 1899, which was Georgia O'Keeffe's bible when she went through the same process.
Making a Mark: Georgia O'Keeffe Month: Learning about Notan #2
This post follows on from Learning about Notan #1. I thought I'd share something about what Dow has to say about Notan - the Japanese concept involving the placement of lights and darks next to the other to read as flat shapes on the two-dimensional surface - and harmony in two value designs and then how this can apply to compositions involving flowers.
Making a Mark: Georgia O'Keeffe Month: Learning about Notan #3
I've been finding it very difficult to reduce to just two value Notan. Although I understand the principles, it would appear my brain does not want to play!
Making a Mark: Georgia O'Keeffe month: "O'Keeffe" by Britta Benke
"O'Keeffe" by Britta Benke (subtitle Georgia O'Keeffe, 1887-1986, Flowers of the Desert) is a splendid and very informative book. It's also a complete bargain, being available for an amazing price whichever country you live in.
Plus
Travels with a Sketchbook in.......: 22nd July: Santa Fe and Georgia O'Keeffe

The Georgia O'Keeffe museum was stunning. I've felt an affinity with the work of Georgia O'Keeffe and her approach to art (her focus on landscapes, macro flowers and colour) for some time and have been keen to know how she achieves such deceptively simple images. I've been wanting to go to the museum for a very long time - on the basis that you can't beat seeing art 'up close and personal' as an aid to understanding art - and was not disappointed.


You may also be inteersted in my information website Georgia O'Keeffe - Resources for Art Lovers where you can find out about American artist Georgia O'Keeffe (1887-1986),
  • her life and her artwork; 
  • where her paintings are in museums and art galleries; 
  • online sites about her and her art; 
  • books and videos about her, 
  • her art and her home in New Mexico.

2 comments:

  1. Katherine, FYI, the current show at the O'Keeffe museum in Santa Fe focusing on her abstraction is absolutely stunning. 100 paintings; oil, watercolor, ink, charcoal and pastel that show what she was really about. The catalogue for the show is also great and can be purchased through the O'Keeffe Museum giftshop. This show was created in collaboration with the Whitney Museum and Phillips Collection where it was also exhibited. Santa Fe is the last stop. I am a docent at the museum and have had the opportunity to see it many times. It never fails to take my breath away. Ann Painter

    ReplyDelete
  2. Thank Ann - I love your surname! :)

    ReplyDelete

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