How Did Georgia O’Keefe Redefine Western American Painting?

 

How Did Georgia O’Keefe Redefine Western American Painting?

A walk into a well-known art gallery will likely bring into focus paintings done by Georgia O'Keefe. This will especially apply to people who are drawn to modernistic paintings. Georgia O'Keefe is regarded as one of the pioneers of new age art that represents Western American lifestyle. Her art is viewed as a complete contrast to what her fellow artists were doing at the time. This not only brought her fame, but also led to new art forms that have reshaped and redefined how modern art is viewed. This is probably one of the reasons her paintings fetch a good price when there is artwork for sale.

Like most artists of her time, Georgia O'Keefe placed more emphasis on abstract drawings and paintings. Additionally, she also blended in representations of objects in her immediate environment. A unique feature of her paintings and drawings was the close-up view of the objects. Her location seemed to play a great role in what was showcased in her artwork. The landscape, natural features, as well as man-made objects are greatly featured in her work. The objects are also determined by the location she was at while coming up with the drawing or painting. Most of her modern art brings out the best of New York where she started her skill as well as New Mexico where she later travelled to.

How Did Georgia O’Keefe Redefine Western American Painting?

A closer look into most of her paintings for sale showcases two-dimensional art. The stylist techniques included use of charcoal, pencil, watercolour, or paint on Masonite panel, canvas, as well as paper. Besides drawing and painting, she also had good skills in making sculptures from clay. Rather than following the trends at the time, she opted to remain unique and individualistic as opposed to joining a group of artists which was norm. This made her standout as a feminist in a world that was largely dominated by male artists. Besides being one of the pioneer women in regard to American artists, her prominence in a male dominated sector is believed to have influenced many female artists of the new era.

Most of her paintings and drawings featured in any art gallery as well as artwork for sale are regarded as completely abstract. There is also a distinction on the work done in New York where she had an inclination towards man-made features such as hard edged architectural forms and skyscrapers. However, art done while in New Mexico is influenced by natural features which comprise of desert landscape, animal bones, shells, and rocks. In both scenarios, flower paintings are also featured quite prominently.

The art is highly symbolic and not a product of realism or pure abstraction. This was achieved through harmonizing objectivity and abstraction. For instance, instead of painting a dry desert or a dry bone lying in a rough terrain, Georgia O'Keefe brought a new direction into the painting by incorporating flowers. An observer is thus able to have two dimensions on the scorching desert yet at the same time having visions of blossoming flowers. Some of her famous paintings that have been featured in paintings for sale include "Flowers in the Desert", "From The faraway Nearby", and "Black Iris."