Animal bones were objects Georgia O'Keeffe frequently painted as symbols of the New Mexico desert.
O'Keeffe collected and painted animal bones that she found in the New Mexico landscape. Bleached skulls, pelvises, and other bones became recurring subjects in her work, especially from the 1930s onward. She treated them as powerful natural forms rather than merely as symbols of death.
Her bone paintings combine close observation with dramatic scale and simplified composition. By placing a bone against an immense sky or a flat field of color, she transformed an ordinary desert object into a monumental image. The works also reflect her attraction to forms weathered by sun, wind, and time.
These paintings are often discussed alongside her flowers, although the subjects are visually opposite: delicate petals on one side and hard, bleached remains on the other. O'Keeffe rejected overly narrow interpretations of her flowers and bones, insisting that viewers attend to their formal and visual qualities.