Muscatine Art Center's collections were significantly enriched by a gift of art by Georgia O'Keeffe. White Lotus
was given in honor of Elizabeth Mabel Holthues Stanley by her family. O'Keeffe created this work in 1939 while working in Hawaii on a commission from the Hawaiian Pineapple Company (shortly thereafter known as Dole Company). White Lotus recently traveled to Honolulu and Santa Fe to be exhibited with works by O'Keeffe and Ansel Adams. The painting has now returned to Muscatine and will be on display during the art talk about O'Keeffe.
Art History Speaker, Carol Ehlers will present "Georgia O'Keeffe: A Sense of Place" on November 13, the third Thursday of the month. The lecture will begin promptly at 5:30 p.m. in the Muscatine Art Center's Music Room. The lecture will feature images of O'Keeffe's work as well as photos from her life from 1929 to 1986. The lecture is FREE and open to the public.
Beginning in 1929, Georgia O'Keeffe began spending part of almost every year painting in New Mexico, first in Taos and later in and about Alcaide, Abiguiu, and Ghost Ranch. Her early subjects in New Mexico were the black crosses of the Penitentes. After her second and third trip to New Mexico, O'Keeffe returned home to the East Coast with an assortment of bone and skulls. Later she captured scenes of the vastness and beauty of the landscapes of New Mexico.
Photo images of O'Keeffe's New Mexico homes tell the compelling story of her life in New Mexico with each home satisfying different aspects of the artist's personal life. From these homes, she created paintings of the houses, surrounding landscape forms, and specific architectural components of the Abiquiu house. Her houses in New Mexico became essential elements in her painting. Ghost Ranch was isolated and gave her immediate access to the natural world. The Abiquiu house perched on a bluff overlooking the Chama River Valley made it possible for O'Keeffe to live more comfortably in the winter in New Mexico. Both houses are characterized by simple furnishing and minimalist esthetics.
By 1938, Dole Company invited O'Keeffe to the islands of Hawaii as its guest and, in exchange, requested two paintings of unspecified subjects for use in a national magazine advertising campaign. The Muscatine Art Center's White Lotus was one of the painting she created from Hawaii.
Georgia O'Keeffe: A Sense of Place
EVENT DETAILS:
What: "Georgia O'Keeffe: A Sense of Place" Lecture on her later life - Thursday, November 13
Who: Carol Ehlers
When: Third Thursday, November 13
Time: 5:30 PM
Where: The Muscatine Art Center's Music Room
Admission to this lecture is FREE.
Please contact Melanie Alexander, Director, with any questions or concerns at 563-263-8282 or by email at malexander@muscatineiowa.gov or www.muscatineartcenter.org
The Muscatine Art Center is located at 1314 Mulberry Avenue in Muscatine, Iowa. Hours are Tuesday through Friday from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Thursday evenings until 7:00 p.m., and Saturday and Sunday from 1:00 to 5:00 p.m. Admission is free. Donations are appreciated. Go to www.muscatineartcenter.org for more information about programs and events and to download a class brochure.
