Which Georgia O'Keeffe painting features a red hill and a white skull from the New Mexico landscape?

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Ram's Head, White Hollyhock-Hills is the Georgia O'Keeffe painting featuring a white ram's skull, a white hollyhock, and red New Mexico hills.

O'Keeffe completed the painting in 1935 after years of working with bones and other natural objects collected in the Southwest. The skull is placed prominently in the foreground, while the flower and distant landscape create a striking combination of organic forms and expansive space.

The composition shows how O'Keeffe brought separate observations together rather than simply copying one scene as it appeared. She often rearranged and enlarged natural objects to emphasize their shapes. The painting therefore combines still life, flower painting, and landscape in a single image.

Its title is important because O'Keeffe made several skull paintings, including Cow's Skull: Red, White, and Blue. The animal is a ram, not a cow, and the work includes a hollyhock as well as the New Mexico hills.

Source: Wikipedia · fact-checked Oct. 2026

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