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Lot Essay
When Georgia O’Keeffe first visited New Mexico in 1929, she was instantly captivated by the rugged, open landscape and the spiritual character of the area. During her frequent visits in the following years and after her permanent move in 1949, O’Keeffe famously captured the natural beauty of the Southwest in a modern abstracted style, emphasizing its undulating forms, bright sunlight and wide spectrum of color. As is true with all of Georgia O'Keeffe's finest works, the potency of Abiquiu Trees VII lies in its careful balance of realism and abstraction, its intricate layering of objective and subjective meaning and its synthesis of form and color. Depicting one of the artist’s most beloved and personal views, Abiquiu Trees VII reflects the intense spirituality that she associated with the landscape.
In 1945, O’Keeffe purchased a 5,000 square-foot Spanish Colonial residential compound in Abiquiu, New Mexico, which became known as her ‘big house.’ With beautiful views of the Chama River Valley, extensive grounds and close proximity to her home at Ghost Ranch, the ruins of the property immediately attracted O’Keeffe and provided an ideal location for her to winter in the Southwest. Spending years renovating before moving in 1949, the artist explained, “I did many things over. I didn’t want it to be Spanish; I didn’t want it to be Indian; I didn’t want it to be modern. I just wanted it to be my house.” (as quoted in W.M. Corn, Georgia O’Keeffe: Living Modern, exhibition catalogue, Brooklyn, New York, 2017, p. 187) In a letter to Arthur Dove, O’Keeffe spoke fondly of the famed view from her residence, “I wish you could see what I see out the window—the earth pink and yellow cliffs to the north—the full pale moon about to go down in an early morning lavender sky behind a very long beautiful tree covered mesa to the west—pink and purple hills in front and the scrubby fine dull green cedars—and a feeling of much space—It is a very beautiful world—I wish you could see it." (as quoted in Georgia O'Keeffe: Art and Letters, New York, 1987, p. 233)
The present work captures that sincere admiration O’Keeffe felt for the view outside her Abiquiu window, showing a hint of the beautiful local landscape she so wished to share. Throughout her career, natural objects ranging from sensuous shells and exotic flowers, to more modest autumn leaves, skunk cabbage and animal bones found their way equally into O'Keeffe's paintings. The tree became an important element of her imagery in 1943 when she began to paint the cottonwood trees outside her bedroom and studio windows at her Abiquiu home. To O'Keeffe, the cottonwoods represented not only a beautiful landscape but also as symbol of regeneration and immortality. "She had begun to paint the cottonwoods in the river basin below the mesa in Abiquiu; evidently, she had chosen to hang one at Ghost Ranch to provide contrast with the dead tree stumps and shriveled vegetation outside the glass windows." (J.G. Castro, The Art & Life of Georgia O'Keeffe, New York, 1985, pp. 130-31)
In Abiquiu Trees VII, O'Keeffe imbues the trees with an ethereal quality, creating an almost otherworldly effect. Her innovative use of an elevated vantage point adds to this impression, as the viewer floats above the New Mexico landscape. A neutral palette with characteristically warm earth tones also contributes to the overall sense of softness and silence of the scene. O’Keeffe continued to develop the theme of these trees throughout her career—the earliest sharp and angular versions gave way, over time, to more attenuated and delicate representations. Other notable examples of O’Keeffe’s cottonwood imagery in public collections include Winter Trees, Abiquiu, III (1950, Georgia O’Keeffe Museum, Santa Fe, New Mexico); Grey Trees by the Road (1952, National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.); Winter Trees, Abiquiu I (Georgia O’Keeffe Museum, Santa Fe, New Mexico) and Early Spring Trees Above Irrigation Ditch, Abiquiu (1950, Georgia O’Keeffe Museum, Santa Fe, New Mexico).
As with her characteristic treatment of botanical subjects, O’Keeffe considered the cottonwood both boldly and distinctively, challenging the conventions of realistic painting and living up to her position as a pioneering Modernist. In the process, she established herself as a leading painter of her day and created a path for the fully abstracted work of Abstract Expressionist and Color Field painters, among others, while also paving the way for post-war female painters like Joan Mitchell and Helen Frankenthaler. It is this unique position, made possible by her genius, originality and unwavering commitment to nature, and exemplified by works like Abiquiu Trees VII, that has resulted in a universal appreciation for O'Keeffe's oeuvre.
In 1945, O’Keeffe purchased a 5,000 square-foot Spanish Colonial residential compound in Abiquiu, New Mexico, which became known as her ‘big house.’ With beautiful views of the Chama River Valley, extensive grounds and close proximity to her home at Ghost Ranch, the ruins of the property immediately attracted O’Keeffe and provided an ideal location for her to winter in the Southwest. Spending years renovating before moving in 1949, the artist explained, “I did many things over. I didn’t want it to be Spanish; I didn’t want it to be Indian; I didn’t want it to be modern. I just wanted it to be my house.” (as quoted in W.M. Corn, Georgia O’Keeffe: Living Modern, exhibition catalogue, Brooklyn, New York, 2017, p. 187) In a letter to Arthur Dove, O’Keeffe spoke fondly of the famed view from her residence, “I wish you could see what I see out the window—the earth pink and yellow cliffs to the north—the full pale moon about to go down in an early morning lavender sky behind a very long beautiful tree covered mesa to the west—pink and purple hills in front and the scrubby fine dull green cedars—and a feeling of much space—It is a very beautiful world—I wish you could see it." (as quoted in Georgia O'Keeffe: Art and Letters, New York, 1987, p. 233)
The present work captures that sincere admiration O’Keeffe felt for the view outside her Abiquiu window, showing a hint of the beautiful local landscape she so wished to share. Throughout her career, natural objects ranging from sensuous shells and exotic flowers, to more modest autumn leaves, skunk cabbage and animal bones found their way equally into O'Keeffe's paintings. The tree became an important element of her imagery in 1943 when she began to paint the cottonwood trees outside her bedroom and studio windows at her Abiquiu home. To O'Keeffe, the cottonwoods represented not only a beautiful landscape but also as symbol of regeneration and immortality. "She had begun to paint the cottonwoods in the river basin below the mesa in Abiquiu; evidently, she had chosen to hang one at Ghost Ranch to provide contrast with the dead tree stumps and shriveled vegetation outside the glass windows." (J.G. Castro, The Art & Life of Georgia O'Keeffe, New York, 1985, pp. 130-31)
In Abiquiu Trees VII, O'Keeffe imbues the trees with an ethereal quality, creating an almost otherworldly effect. Her innovative use of an elevated vantage point adds to this impression, as the viewer floats above the New Mexico landscape. A neutral palette with characteristically warm earth tones also contributes to the overall sense of softness and silence of the scene. O’Keeffe continued to develop the theme of these trees throughout her career—the earliest sharp and angular versions gave way, over time, to more attenuated and delicate representations. Other notable examples of O’Keeffe’s cottonwood imagery in public collections include Winter Trees, Abiquiu, III (1950, Georgia O’Keeffe Museum, Santa Fe, New Mexico); Grey Trees by the Road (1952, National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.); Winter Trees, Abiquiu I (Georgia O’Keeffe Museum, Santa Fe, New Mexico) and Early Spring Trees Above Irrigation Ditch, Abiquiu (1950, Georgia O’Keeffe Museum, Santa Fe, New Mexico).
As with her characteristic treatment of botanical subjects, O’Keeffe considered the cottonwood both boldly and distinctively, challenging the conventions of realistic painting and living up to her position as a pioneering Modernist. In the process, she established herself as a leading painter of her day and created a path for the fully abstracted work of Abstract Expressionist and Color Field painters, among others, while also paving the way for post-war female painters like Joan Mitchell and Helen Frankenthaler. It is this unique position, made possible by her genius, originality and unwavering commitment to nature, and exemplified by works like Abiquiu Trees VII, that has resulted in a universal appreciation for O'Keeffe's oeuvre.