Georgia O'Keeffe made the desert paintings that defined her later career in New Mexico.
O'Keeffe first visited New Mexico in 1917 and returned repeatedly during the 1920s. She was drawn to its stark landscapes, adobe buildings, bones, flowers, and intense light. These subjects became central to paintings that helped establish her best-known visual vocabulary.
She moved to New Mexico permanently in 1949, three years after the death of her husband, Alfred Stieglitz. She lived and worked in Abiquiu and spent time at Ghost Ranch, north of Santa Fe. Paintings of the region include views of the cliffs, hills, roads, and architectural forms around her homes.
New Mexico is sometimes confused with Arizona because both states are associated with the American Southwest and desert scenery. O'Keeffe's New Mexico subjects, however, are specifically tied to places such as Ghost Ranch, Abiquiu, and the Chama River Valley.