April 2016

I confess that I never knew Georgia O’Keefe lived in New York. I always thought she spent her entire life in New Mexico, which I have visited just once, but still think of when I contemplate beautiful places. Thus GEORGIA: A Novel of Georgia O’Keeffe by Dawn Tripp was a real treat as I read about Georgia’s life in New York (where she moved in 1916), her relationship and marriage to the noted photographer and art dealer Alfred Stieglitz, and her works beyond the flowers and landscapes that I have come to associate with her. Stieglitz’s photographs of her, many of them nudes, drew attention to them both. He also marketed and showed her work, positioning her in the art world and continuously urging her to do more.

Georgia broke with convention, she broke rules in the art world and pushed the limits of conventional work. At the same time, she was balancing her life with Stieglitz, a womanizer who frequently embarrassed her with his dalliances with people they both knew. He also failed to give her the one thing she coveted, a child, which was a disappointment in her life. It was not an easy relationship, but each of them drew from it as much as they pushed it away.

I devoured this book, which is beautifully written and showed many dimensions of Georgia. Her move to New Mexico to paint was bold as she left Stieglitz behind and pushed through to create art that moved and inspired her. For her, it was a place of refuge that gave her strength as much as it was a creative haven.

A great comparison to GEORGIA is Nancy Horan’s LOVING FRANK. Both women were in relationships with men who were artists and were driven, often to the idea of obsession with what they wanted from their partners and those around them.

Book groups can have great discussions surrounding this, and I would highly recommend exploring her art both online and in art books to supplement your discussion.