How to see more and care less: The art of Georgia O'Keeffe - Iseult Gillespie
-
0:07 - 0:12A canvas drenched in sunset hues,
colors radiating like flame. -
0:12 - 0:17At first glance, this painting may appear
to be an impossible, abstract image. -
0:17 - 0:20But a closer look reveals
the tender stems, -
0:20 - 0:23lush petals and velvety texture
of a Canna Lily. -
0:23 - 0:27This metamorphosis of natural subjects
into abstract geometry -
0:27 - 0:30is commonplace in the work
of Georgia O’Keeffe— -
0:30 - 0:33the revolutionary American painter
and sculptor. -
0:33 - 0:36But the magic behind
this transformation remains -
0:36 - 0:39just as elusive as the artist herself.
-
0:39 - 0:44Born in Wisconsin in 1887, O’Keeffe spent
her childhood plucking wildflowers -
0:44 - 0:47and arranging fruits to paint.
-
0:47 - 0:52At seventeen, she moved to Chicago
to study at the prestigious Art Institute. -
0:52 - 0:55Her teachers trained her
to faithfully reproduce reality -
0:55 - 0:58in the conventions of European masters.
-
0:58 - 1:01Although she enjoyed the solitude
and precision of this work, -
1:01 - 1:05O’Keeffe felt little
personal connection to it. -
1:05 - 1:09After moving to New York, she was
increasingly drawn to the clean lines, -
1:09 - 1:13striking composition and vivid colors
of Japanese art. -
1:13 - 1:16O’Keeffe soon found a teacher
whose lessons inspired her -
1:16 - 1:18to put those interests into practice.
-
1:18 - 1:20Unlike her previous teachers,
-
1:20 - 1:25Arthur Wesley Dow urged his students
to focus on more abstract representations -
1:25 - 1:27of light, shape, and color.
-
1:27 - 1:32These lessons manifested in O’Keeffe’s
first series of abstract drawings. -
1:32 - 1:36Rendered in charcoal, they present
a series of undulating lines, -
1:36 - 1:38bold shading and billowing clouds.
-
1:38 - 1:41These drawings defy easy classification—
-
1:41 - 1:46suggesting, but never quite matching,
any specific natural reference. -
1:46 - 1:49Earlier European painters
in the Cubist tradition -
1:49 - 1:53had employed rigid geometry
to abstract external subjects. -
1:53 - 1:57But here, O’Keeffe employed
the shapes and rhythms of nature -
1:57 - 1:59to capture her internal feelings.
-
1:59 - 2:02Experiments like these
would soon become a cornerstone -
2:02 - 2:05of an artistic movement
called American Modernism. -
2:05 - 2:08Although no single style defines
Modernist painting, -
2:08 - 2:12its proponents shared a desire
to challenge the realist traditions -
2:12 - 2:15that dominated art education.
-
2:15 - 2:17Beginning in the late 1910’s,
Modernist painting -
2:17 - 2:20often used geometric shapes
and bold colors -
2:20 - 2:23to probe the American psyche.
-
2:23 - 2:26O’Keeffe threw herself
into these experiments — -
2:26 - 2:28but she was reluctant
to share her new work. -
2:28 - 2:33However, when a friend sent her charcoals
to the art dealer Alfred Stieglitz, -
2:33 - 2:34he became entranced.
-
2:34 - 2:39In 1916, he arranged
for a grand exhibition in New York. -
2:39 - 2:42This marked the beginning of O’Keeffe’s
career as a popular artist— -
2:42 - 2:46and a relationship that would lead
to marriage in 1924. -
2:46 - 2:49Marriage didn’t diminish O’Keeffe’s
taste for solitude. -
2:49 - 2:51She travelled widely to teach,
-
2:51 - 2:54and often retreated to paint
for months at a time. -
2:54 - 2:57Whether she was exploring
the craggy canyons of Texas, -
2:57 - 3:02the quiet forests of South Carolina,
or the sun-bleached desert of New Mexico, -
3:02 - 3:06her creative process was based on
ritual and close observation. -
3:06 - 3:09She paid meticulous attention
to small details, -
3:09 - 3:13and spent hours mixing paints
to create exactly the right colors. -
3:13 - 3:16When she found the perfect hue,
she’d record it -
3:16 - 3:19in her ever-growing collection
of handmade color cards. -
3:19 - 3:23O’Keeffe also experimented
with perspective to celebrate objects -
3:23 - 3:25that were often overlooked.
-
3:25 - 3:27In "Rams Head with Hollyhock,"
-
3:27 - 3:30she places a weathered skull
and a delicate flower -
3:30 - 3:32high above the hills below.
-
3:32 - 3:35This massive skull overshadows
the landscape, -
3:35 - 3:40casting both the skeleton
and the mountains in a new, eerie light. -
3:40 - 3:45The public was captivated by her
unique perspective and secretive behavior. -
3:45 - 3:48She was particularly praised
for her massive flower paintings, -
3:48 - 3:52ranging from fiery poppies
to ghostly calla lillies. -
3:52 - 3:56Stieglitz and other critics of the time
were infatuated by Freudian psychology, -
3:56 - 3:59and were quick to link these paintings
to female genitalia. -
3:59 - 4:02But O’Keeffe dismissed
such interpretations. -
4:02 - 4:05She resented the male gaze
that dominated the art world, -
4:05 - 4:07and demanded her work be respected
-
4:07 - 4:10for its emotional evocation
of the natural world. -
4:10 - 4:13Eventually, O’Keeffe settled down
in New Mexico, -
4:13 - 4:16near one of her favorite artist retreats.
-
4:16 - 4:18In her 70’s, her eyesight began to fail,
-
4:18 - 4:23but she continued to mine the landscape’s
mysteries in new, tactile mediums. -
4:23 - 4:27O’Keeffe kept creating
until her death at 98, -
4:27 - 4:30and is remembered as
the “Mother of American Modernism.” -
4:30 - 4:34Decades on, her work retains
its wild energy— -
4:34 - 4:36and O’Keeffe her personal mystique.
- Title:
- How to see more and care less: The art of Georgia O'Keeffe - Iseult Gillespie
- Speaker:
- Iseult Gillespie
- Description:
-
View full lesson: https://ed.ted.com/lessons/how-to-see-more-and-care-less-the-art-of-georgia-o-keeffe-iseult-gillespie
Feeling disconnected from creating art within classical conventions, artist Georgia O’Keeffe began experimenting with abstract drawings that defied easy classification. Using the shapes and rhythms of nature to capture her internal world, these experiments became the cornerstone of the movement known as American Modernism. Iseult Gillespie explores the works of the elusive painter and sculptor.
Lesson by Iseult Gillespie, directed by Lisa LaBracio.
- Video Language:
- English
- Team:
- closed TED
- Project:
- TED-Ed
- Duration:
- 04:38
lauren mcalpine approved English subtitles for How to see more and care less: The art of Georgia O'Keeffe | ||
lauren mcalpine accepted English subtitles for How to see more and care less: The art of Georgia O'Keeffe | ||
lauren mcalpine edited English subtitles for How to see more and care less: The art of Georgia O'Keeffe | ||
Tara Ahmadinejad edited English subtitles for How to see more and care less: The art of Georgia O'Keeffe | ||
Tara Ahmadinejad edited English subtitles for How to see more and care less: The art of Georgia O'Keeffe |