New Mexico
In 2006 I visited New Mexico to study the paintings of Georgia O'Keefe and to see the landscape she painted. By visiting the landscape that inspired much of O’Keefe’s work and comparing many of the sites with its corresponding painting gave me the opportunity to discover how the artist drew a fine line between specific observation and her use of nature and natural forms as vehicles to express her inner most feelings resulting sometimes in highly abstracted images. I also visited the Georgia O’Keefe Museum and the Georgia O’Keefe Research Centre and Library in Santa Fe, New Mexico. At the Centre I had access to the extensive collection of the artist’s preliminary sketches, paints, pigments, colour swabs and brushes( which she had personally trimmed to suit her needs). This resource provided me with valuable insights into her work practices and methodologies. It also included an wide-ranging collection of rocks and memorabilia which the artist had collected throughout her lifetime and had used in her paintings. As a result I painted a series of works on the landscape in New Mexico.
New Mexico,
(2006),
oil on canvas,
75.5 x 101.5cm