Insights into the Creative Process of Artists
262.812x208.525 (Original: 426x338)In The Poetry of Things, the 1999 book that celebrates Georgia O'Keeffe's monumental and trailblazing still lifes, the artist breaks down why flowers became her...
262.812x208.525 (Original: 426x338)In The Poetry of Things, the 1999 book that celebrates Georgia O'Keeffe's monumental and trailblazing still lifes, the artist breaks down why flowers became her focus: 'I said to myself — I'll paint what I see — what the flower is to me but I'll paint it big and they will be surprised into taking time to look at it. I will make even busy New Yorkers take time to see what I see of flowers.' Her magnified blooms, first exhibited in 1923, caused a sensation.
Georgia O'Keeffe sketching at Lake George, 1918 by Alfred Stieglitz
O'Keeffe nurtured plants, observed them and painted them; in From the Old Garden No. 1, she has rendered the delicate structure and gradient hues of a blooming lily with striking precision.
The bucolic gardens and surrounding countryside became his principal subject, he returned to the same scenes to capture shifting light effects and moved around the surrounding fields with a rolling easel. In 1898, he wrote to this son Lucien, telling him that he had completed four paintings of the fields adjoining the house, each at different times of day; one of them was Meule et vaches dans le pré à Eragny, soleil couchant (1896) a rural idyll of haystacks, grazing cows and verdant pasture, with a solitary worker pushing a wheelbarrow.
Pissarro's protégé Henri Lebasque, a regular guest at Éragny, was also known for his joyous landscapes and shimmering light effects; in Femme et fillettes dans un verger en fleurs, he depicts the exuberance of spring with a small group sitting in the shade of trees heavily laden with blossom.
Sign up for Going Once, a weekly newsletter
delivering our top stories and art market insights
to your inbox
SUBSCRIBE NOW
Related lots
-1753179757-1760958724.webp)
-1754657338.jfif)
Related auctions
Related stories
Painting | ART WORLD TRENDS
Art as Therapy: Creativity for Mental Wellness
Nature and Animals | ART WORLD TRENDS
Understanding Color Psychology in Artistic
Artwork | ART WORLD TRENDS
How Artists Tell Stories Through Their Work
Oil Painting | ART WORLD TRENDS
How Art Reflects and Influences Modern Culture
Artwork | ART WORLD TRENDS
Transform Your Backyard into a Relaxing Oasis
Artwork | ART WORLD TRENDS