“I have but one desire as a painter – that is to paint what I see, as I see it, in my own way, without regard for the desires or taste of the professional dealer or the professional collector.”- Georgia O’Keeffe
Very few people can say that they knew, without a doubt, what their life purpose would be by the age of 10. But artist Georgia O’Keeffe was one of these rarities. As a young girl raised in Wisconsin in the late 1880s, O’Keeffe expressed her desire to paint to her parents and received training in watercolors from local artist Sara Mann. Throughout her life, O’Keeffe taught in many schools and colleges and painted pieces for display at various art shows and galleries. However, at one point, unamused with painting for a commercial audience, she put down her brushes and didn’t paint for four years. O’Keefe was driven to paint again after taking a class with artist Arthur Dow, who inspired her to use lines, colors and shading together in harmony.
O’Keeffe constantly challenged herself to discover new mediums of painting and relentlessly searched different environments for insight. She’s known for her expression through the soft pastels and bold warm colors in nature. Greatly influenced by the landscape of Texas and New Mexico, she even found beauty in rocks and carcasses of the desert and incorporated them into her art. Her work was in high demand and in 1928, her husband, Alfred Stieglitz, orchestrated a sale of six of her calla lily paintings for $25,000, which was the largest sum ever paid for a group of paintings by a living American artist.
O’Keeffe is known as one of the most important American artists. She used her talent to bring a fresh new perspective to the world of art, injecting a femininity into her pieces in a way that had never been done before. Even today, she inspires all to appreciate the beauty in the world and go beyond the conventional to fulfill the desires of the soul. So paint your world how you want it to be and then live it!
Be inspired by some of Georgia O’Keeffe’s beautiful paintings here.
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