Ghost Ranch became closely associated with Georgia O'Keeffe's New Mexico landscapes.
O'Keeffe first visited New Mexico in 1917 and returned regularly, finding that its cliffs, deserts, bones, and intense light offered subjects unlike those of New York. She began spending summers at Ghost Ranch in the early 1930s. The ranch, near Abiquiu, is known for its multicolored cliffs and broad high-desert views.
Paintings such as Ranchos Church, New Mexico and works depicting the Pedernal reflect her sustained response to the region. O'Keeffe once described the Pedernal mesa as her private mountain, saying that God told her if she painted it often enough, she could have it. Ghost Ranch is sometimes confused with Abiquiu, where O'Keeffe also owned a house. They are distinct places, although both were central to her New Mexico life and art.