Georgia O'Keeffe repeatedly painted the Shelton Hotel from her apartment window.
The Shelton Hotel, now known as the New York Marriott East Side, became a recurring subject for O'Keeffe during the years she lived in New York. From her high-floor apartment, she painted views of the building and the surrounding city, translating architecture into simplified vertical and geometric forms.
These works are important because they show O'Keeffe engaging directly with the modern American city. She is more commonly associated with flowers and New Mexico, but New York skyscrapers formed a significant part of her earlier career. The Empire State Building and Chrysler Building are famous New York landmarks, yet neither is the specific hotel repeatedly connected with her apartment-window paintings.