Who encouraged Alfred Stieglitz to exhibit Georgia O'Keeffe's drawings in 1916?

Anita Pollitzer encouraged Alfred Stieglitz to exhibit Georgia O'Keeffe’s drawings in 1916. Pollitzer, a friend and former classmate of O'Keeffe, showed Stieglitz some of O'Keeffe’s abstract charcoal drawings.

Stieglitz was an influential photographer, gallery owner, and promoter of modern art. He exhibited the drawings at his New York gallery, 291, without O'Keeffe’s prior permission. The display introduced her work to an important network of American modernists.

O'Keeffe was initially upset that the drawings had been shown without her consent, but the event began a significant professional and personal relationship. Stieglitz presented her first solo exhibition at 291 in 1917 and later became her husband.

Pollitzer is sometimes omitted from simplified accounts of O'Keeffe’s rise, which can make it seem that Stieglitz discovered her work alone. Her action was the direct link that brought the drawings to his attention.