Georgia OKeefe (1887-1986)Realism

OKeefes LifeBorn 1887, on a large dairy farm in WisconsinStudied at the Art Institute of Chicago & the Art Students League in New YorkShe taught art in public schools & became head of art department at a college in Texas1929, spent a summer in New Mexico & fell in love with the dry, magical landscape & broad desert skies1949, moved to New Mexico in 19491986, died, 98 years old

OKeeffes ArtMagnification of an image Many works (flowers and landscapes) are zoomed in to create a feeling of emotional closeness to the objectAfter moving to New Mexico, focused on the desert sceneryFor example, animal bones on the barren desertKnown for her works of natural objects such as flowers, clouds, & animal skulls & bonesNever painted people or any living creatures

Vocabulary DefinitionsRealism: Representing pieces in artwork in a true-to-life manner, using lifelike colors, textures, shadows, & proportionsPositive Space: The main shapes or spaces in artwork - the space that is filled with somethingNegative Space: The space surrounding shapes in artwork empty space

A Sunflower From MaggieHow does she make the flower look real?

Purple PetuniasI found I could say things with color and shapes that I couldn't say any other way - things I had no words for. -OKeeffe

Black IrisDoes OKeeffe use one flower or a bunch of flowers?

Red CannaI decided that if I could paint that flower in a huge scale, you could not ignore its beauty. OKeeffe

Red AmaryllisDoes the flower look real or abstract?

Cow's Skull with Calico RosesThe days you work are the best days. -OKeeffe

PoppyDo OKeeffes flowers fill the page and touch the edges or are they small and in the center of the page?

Art Masterpiece ProjectLightly sketch a circle in the center of your paperLightly sketch lines from the circle to the edges of the paperTo represent the petals of the flowerUse diluted watercolors, 1st using pale colors then darker colorsLeave areas of white showing around the petalsCreate details in the flower with watercolorsTry mixing colors on the paper to create soft edges Avoid outlining with dark, thick lines of paintTry using color to create edges instead of outlining A yellow-orange portion of a petal overlapping a light yellow portion of another petal will create that edge without the use of an outline

1977, she received the Presidential Medal of Freedom, and in 1985, she was awarded the National Medal of Arts. The art of Georgia OKeeffe has been well known for eight decades in this country and for many years has been attaining similar prominence abroad. More than 500 examples of her works are in over 100 public collections in Asia, Europe, and North and Central America.At the time of her death in 1986, when she was ninety-eight, OKeeffe owned more than one-half of the 2,029 known works of her total output.

*This famous work is oil on canvas and is one of the many paintings of flowers completed by Georgia OKeeffe during the 1920s. Her style was to enlarge the painting subjects to intensify their identity, increase their importance, and dramatize their emotional power.

*