Georgia O'Keeffe
Georgia O'Keeffe
A Life Well Lived
Bronze Winner for Photography in 2020 Foreword INDIES Book of the Year Awards
Georgia O'Keeffe remains an icon, continuing to inspire generations to break barriers and embrace the natural world in both art and life. Featuring sixty-four lush, full-color photographs, this stunning new work captures O'Keeffe as she neared her ninetieth birthday, showcasing her homes and companions at Ghost Ranch and Abiquiú and the landscapes that inspired her. While O'Keeffe and her environs have been the subject of many photographers' work, only Varon was specifically chosen by O'Keeffe to photograph her work in color.
This book is the first collection of photographs to portray O'Keeffe and her surroundings in color. Varon includes an insightful reflection on his experiences with O'Keeffe in which he brings the photographs to life in an intimate way. Cody Hartley, the director of the Georgia O'Keeffe Museum, and Barbara Buhler Lynes, the foremost O'Keeffe scholar, provide further context to Varon's photographs.
This new collection of photographs and essays rounds out a portrait of the artist in her nineties: firm, serene, and in control of her personal and artistic legacy.'--Rachel Jagareski, Foreword Reviews
[Varon's] words only enhance the imagery seen throughout the pages, showing the artist beyond her public persona and living her day-to-day life in a place she loved surrounded by people she loved.'--American Fine Art Magazine
Varon's photographs show the traditional O'Keeffe, dressed in black or white, her wrinkled face solemn, facing away from the camera. They also portray a lesser-known side of the artist. There are rare photographs showing O'Keeffe smiling, and even some of her laughing with longtime companion Juan Hamilton.'--Sandra Dallas, Denver Post
More often seen in black-and-white images, O'Keeffe comes to life in these intimate color photographs.'--Kate Nelson, New Mexico Magazine
When Georgia O'Keeffe modeled for professional photographers, she dressed in black and white and favored poses that rendered her a serious and solitary human being. She would not smile, or show her teeth, and she often looked away from the camera. As she moved into her ninth decade, however, she dropped her guard for Malcolm Varon. She let him capture her in free flow, her eyes twinkling, her mouth smiling, her eyes looking into his lens. . . . Varon gives us an approachable O'Keeffe, a warm human being with a winning smile!'--Wanda M. Corn, author of Georgia O'Keeffe: Living Modern
There are many books on O'Keeffe, but none that show the depth of the personal relationship she had with Malcolm Varon, who was the only photographer to be deemed qualified by O'Keeffe to produce color photographs of her work for over two decades.'--Stuart Ashman, CEO of the Santa Fe International Folk Art Market
Malcolm Varon has photographed on location across three continents in museums, collectors’ homes, art galleries, and artists’ studios. His photographs of O’Keeffe as well as his photographs of paintings and sculptures have been featured in over 175 books.
Foreword
Cody Hartley
Introduction
Barbara Buhler Lynes
Photographs
Part One. Georgia O'Keeffe: A Woman of Intense Personality and Piercing Intelligence
Part Two. Georgia O'Keeffe and Juan Hamilton: A "Strong and Tender Connection"
Part Three. Her Space: The Places and People Important to Georgia O'Keeffe
Reflective Essay
Malcolm Varon
