Georgia O'Keeffe painted the iris in close-up works such as Black Iris.
Black Iris is a 1926 painting that magnifies the flower's dark, folded petals into an almost abstract composition. O'Keeffe frequently enlarged flowers so that viewers had to confront their shapes, curves, colors, and internal structures rather than seeing them as small decorative objects.
The painting is often discussed alongside her other flower enlargements, including works featuring calla lilies, poppies, and jimson weeds. A common misconception is that every enlarged flower painting was intended as a literal botanical study; O'Keeffe instead used recognizable natural forms as vehicles for modernist design and visual intensity.
Black Iris belongs to the Metropolitan Museum of Art's collection. Interpretations of its imagery have varied, but the work is most securely described through its formal qualities: dark tonal contrasts, organic contours, and a dramatically cropped flower.