Status
Available
Publication
Random House (2016), Edition: 1st.., 336 pages
Description
In 1916, Georgia O'Keeffe is a young, unknown art teacher when she travels to New York to meet Stieglitz, the famed photographer and art dealer, who has discovered O'Keeffe's work and exhibits it in his gallery. Their connection is instantaneous. O'Keeffe is quickly drawn into Stieglitz's sophisticated world, becoming his mistress, protégé, and muse, as their attraction deepens into an intense and tempestuous relationship and his photographs of her, both clothed and nude, create a sensation. Yet as her own creative force develops, Georgia begins to push back against what critics and others are saying about her and her art. And soon she must make difficult choices to live a life she believes in.
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User reviews
LibraryThing member artheart
The author has written a brilliant historical fiction about the beautiful, talented, free spirited Georgia O’Keeffe. O’Keeffe was an accepted and successful artist at a time when many felt only men could be accomplished artists. Numerous books have been written about Georgia O’Keeffe,
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focusing on both her art and her life as well as discussing the passionate physical and artistic relationship of O'Keeffe and Alfred Stieglitz, American Photographer / Modern Art Promoter. One comes away with the feeling they have met and experienced a fascinating woman - one who is not always pleasant and kind, but one who is open and honest. Dawn Tripp, author has captured the essence of Georgia O'Keeffe and Alfred Stieglitz, their circle of family, friends and acquaintances. I highly recommend "Georgia." Show Less
LibraryThing member lansum
Much has been written about Georgia O’Keeffe and Alfred Stieglitz, both as artists and lovers. In her new book, Georgia, Dawn Tripp has written about their relationship in the first person (O’Keeffe’s), and present tense. The result is a novel that makes us feel as though we have a very close
Stieglitz was an extremely talented photographer and gallery owner in New York, 23 years older than O’Keeffe, and in an unhappy marriage when they met. Their relationship was part Pygmalion, and part Phantom and Christine Daaé. O’Keeffe was Stieglitz’s muse, but he also recognized, encouraged, and promoted her own talent.
Tripp’s prose is crisp and to-the-point, much like O’Keefe’s letters and recorded conversations. We get to know O’Keeffe not only through her thoughts and feelings, but also by the way they are expressed. In the end, we become more sensitive to her phenomenal art. It’s a major accomplishment for Dawn Tripp. My Early Reviewer edition states that the book will be on sale March 29, 2016. Highly recommended.
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relationship with this extraordinary woman.Stieglitz was an extremely talented photographer and gallery owner in New York, 23 years older than O’Keeffe, and in an unhappy marriage when they met. Their relationship was part Pygmalion, and part Phantom and Christine Daaé. O’Keeffe was Stieglitz’s muse, but he also recognized, encouraged, and promoted her own talent.
Tripp’s prose is crisp and to-the-point, much like O’Keefe’s letters and recorded conversations. We get to know O’Keeffe not only through her thoughts and feelings, but also by the way they are expressed. In the end, we become more sensitive to her phenomenal art. It’s a major accomplishment for Dawn Tripp. My Early Reviewer edition states that the book will be on sale March 29, 2016. Highly recommended.
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LibraryThing member Beamis12
4.5 My last book of the year and my last review and it was a fantastic one. One of the best books about an artist that I have read in several years. Georgia O'Keefe, love her paintings but never knew much about her as a person. In this book Tripp, does an amazing and thorough job fleshing out the
Beautifully written, some of the phrases are just breathtaking, many I read more than once. We learn O'Keefe hopes and dreams, what made her who she is, her disappointments and her joys. We follow her from her first meeting with her husband, to her later years in Taos. Through her changing art forms and her visions, where they came from, where she wanted to take them. Her past life is related in O'Keefe's own thoughts but lightly touched on.
The authors note explains her sources as well as how she became interested in O'Keefe herself. Spent much time on Wiki looking up the various pieces mentioned as well as the photographs taken by her husband.
What an amazing woman, what an amazing full life. Tripp really bought this artist to life for me, as a creator and as a woman. Stunning.
ARC from publisher.
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woman and showing us her struggles as an artist. Her husband Stieglitz and their relationship, what kept them connected and what separated them. Credited with the discovery of O'Keefe, he was already a very successful photographer in his own right. Their relationship was passionate, many sex scenes in the beginning of the novel can attest to this and alternately contentious as O'Keefe fought to acquire an identity as an artist separate from his.Beautifully written, some of the phrases are just breathtaking, many I read more than once. We learn O'Keefe hopes and dreams, what made her who she is, her disappointments and her joys. We follow her from her first meeting with her husband, to her later years in Taos. Through her changing art forms and her visions, where they came from, where she wanted to take them. Her past life is related in O'Keefe's own thoughts but lightly touched on.
The authors note explains her sources as well as how she became interested in O'Keefe herself. Spent much time on Wiki looking up the various pieces mentioned as well as the photographs taken by her husband.
What an amazing woman, what an amazing full life. Tripp really bought this artist to life for me, as a creator and as a woman. Stunning.
ARC from publisher.
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LibraryThing member lauriebrown54
This novel tells O’Keeffe’s story from her own point of view, as an old woman looking back on her life, starting from the time she was 27 and had sent some charcoal abstracts to Alfred Stieglitz in New York to get his opinion. A correspondence sprang up between then, and one day, after learning
A lot of the story is about Georgia’s love affair and marriage to Stieglitz; her work was shown and sold through him so he is inextricably bound to her professional life. Their marriage might have been passionate, but it was a troubled one. He wanted to support her work in every way (except by being someone she could trust, martially), but also seemed to fear her being on her own. They had a dependence on each other; she more dependent on him at the beginning; he more on her, later.
The writing is intense and rather amazing. Tripp wrote this after O’Keeffe and Stieglitz’s correspondence was published, and she combed their letters thoroughly. In some spots, she has used their own words. The thing that impressed me the most was the author’s ability to describe painting; how it felt to put charcoal or brush to paper or canvas, how the colors sat against each other, how the creative urge felt. How it felt different to do the lush flowers, the desert landscapes, the abstracts. I really felt that I was inside O’Keeffe’s mind as she thought back on her life.
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Stieglitz had mounted a show of her work, she walked away from her job as a teacher in Texas, withdrew her bank account, and took the train to New York to see it. It turned out that the show had just been dismantled; the studio, 291, was closing because of the war. But the relationship that had already started on paper bloomed in person, with Stieglitz rehanging her paintings just for her to see. By the time Georgia left to return to Texas, they were passionate about each other, a passion that would remain throughout their lives with all its ups and downs. A lot of the story is about Georgia’s love affair and marriage to Stieglitz; her work was shown and sold through him so he is inextricably bound to her professional life. Their marriage might have been passionate, but it was a troubled one. He wanted to support her work in every way (except by being someone she could trust, martially), but also seemed to fear her being on her own. They had a dependence on each other; she more dependent on him at the beginning; he more on her, later.
The writing is intense and rather amazing. Tripp wrote this after O’Keeffe and Stieglitz’s correspondence was published, and she combed their letters thoroughly. In some spots, she has used their own words. The thing that impressed me the most was the author’s ability to describe painting; how it felt to put charcoal or brush to paper or canvas, how the colors sat against each other, how the creative urge felt. How it felt different to do the lush flowers, the desert landscapes, the abstracts. I really felt that I was inside O’Keeffe’s mind as she thought back on her life.
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LibraryThing member Gingersnap000
Georgia is a historical fiction about the famous American Artist, Georgia O'Keeffe. If I had not received this novel to review as a Librarything Early Reviewer, it would be on my must read list. The novel has been well researched by author Dawn Tripp who paints a portrait a strong woman who like
Stieglitz is similar in character as Hemingway, Wright, or Charles Lindbergh, as he is weak in character and only looking out for number one. Georgia does understand her need and his need for him in her life and fortunately does not let him pressure her to lead a false life.
If you have never had the pleasure to see any of her art in person, perhaps you will not understand the genius of the woman but Ms. Tripp's novel will help you understand what motivated Georgia to created the powerful and beautiful that she did. The book along with Miss O'Keeffe's art has inspired me to take a trip to Taos, New Mexico this Spring to enjoy the beauty of the land she loved and captured in her art.
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many other women falls prey to a charismatic older married man. Unlike several other Historical Fiction such as the Paris Wife, The Aviator's Wife or Frank and I, the female protagonist is the American Icon. Granted Georgia O'Keeffe was not famous when she met her soon to be husband, Stieglitz, she does become the bread winner in the family.Stieglitz is similar in character as Hemingway, Wright, or Charles Lindbergh, as he is weak in character and only looking out for number one. Georgia does understand her need and his need for him in her life and fortunately does not let him pressure her to lead a false life.
If you have never had the pleasure to see any of her art in person, perhaps you will not understand the genius of the woman but Ms. Tripp's novel will help you understand what motivated Georgia to created the powerful and beautiful that she did. The book along with Miss O'Keeffe's art has inspired me to take a trip to Taos, New Mexico this Spring to enjoy the beauty of the land she loved and captured in her art.
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LibraryThing member susan0316
Dawn Tripp has painted a wonderful portrait of the artist Georgia O'Keeffe in her novel about the artist. I knew her paintings and a little bit about her life before I read this book but I learned so much more about her life and her struggles to become accepted as an artist in what was really a
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man's world. Alfred Steiglitz was her mentor, her lover, her husband and ultimately the person who tried to hold her back. She was a gifted, brash, solitary but very honest person who knew that her goal in life was to create art out of the life around her. The book was fantastic and I couldn't put it down. Since I finished, I have been on line, looking at her paintings and his photos of her. Its more than just a book about a famous artist, it's a book about a woman who breaks out of the norms of her times and the struggles that she has to go through to be successful. Show Less
LibraryThing member JudithDCollins
A special thank you to Random House and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Inspired by the life of the extraordinary iconic American artist, Georgia O’Keeffe, the "Mother of American modernism", and her love relationship with, photographer Alfred Stieglitz; beautifully drawn,
Not only an exploration of O’Keeffe’s life, art, politics, and influence; however, more importantly, an example of the many tough challenges faced by women of the era. The 1920s marked a period of new freedom for women in America's modernizing urban culture.
Set in a world of change, at the end of WWI to the Roaring '20s and then the Great Depression, scrutinized both personally and professionally-- Readers will be swept away; from erotic, bold, intense, romantic, control, and sacrifice. Powerful and evocative!
"I found I could say things with color and shapes that I couldn't say any other way - things I had no words for." -Georgia O'Keeffe
Capturing the awareness, spirit and raw desires of two extraordinary artists-- Tripp creates imagining dialogue, and scenes between the two, as well as their circle of friends, family, and acquaintances—to create a mesmerizing blending; an infusion of fact and fiction—strong human dynamics of love and desires.
Georgia O’Keeffe is one of the most significant and intriguing artists of the twentieth century, known internationally for her boldly innovative art. Her distinct flowers, dramatic cityscapes, glowing landscapes, and images of bones against the stark desert sky are iconic and original contributions to American Modernism.
Early on, O’Keeffe mailed some of her highly abstract drawings to a friend in New York City, who showed them to Alfred Stieglitz. An art dealer and internationally known photographer, he was the first to exhibit her work in 1916. Soon thereafter, her life took on a drastic change--a passionate and often tumultuous relationship, to the desperate need to step out of his shadow.
Georgia O’Keeffe is a young woman, painting and teaching art in Texas, when she travels to New York to meet Alfred Stieglitz, the married gallery owner of 291, modern art promoter, and photographer. Their instantaneous attraction and powerful hunger for each other draw her into his world of art, sex, and passion, and she becomes his mistress and his muse. He would eventually become O’Keeffe’s husband.
The language of letters –Intimate, vulnerable, complex. A woman of exceptional passion, a rigorous intelligence, and a strong creative drive. From 1915 until 1946, some 25,000 pieces of paper were exchanged between two major 20th-century artists. Painter Georgia O'Keeffe and photographer Alfred Stieglitz wrote each other letters — sometimes two and three a day, some of them 40 pages long.
The correspondence tracks their relationship from acquaintances to admirers to lovers, man and wife, and their marriage struggles. As her own artistic fervor begins to push the boundaries of her life, we see Georgia transform into the powerfully independent woman she is known as today.
The author was inspired and fascinated behind the discrepancies in fact as well as varied interpretation of the woman behind the icon. As Tripp reiterates, the critical language repeatedly used to describe and define O’Keeffe’s work by male critics during her lifetime was an important inspiration for the novel. In gendered terms—“limiting our perception of her art and influence.”
From New York, 1917, Texas, to New Mexico, 1979, time stands still when he whispers, “Don’t move”, Georgia. “Whatever you are thinking, don’t lose it. Don’t move. Don’t blink. Nothing. “
“Perhaps Stieglitz is not my life, but a detour from it.”
O'Keeffe's distinctive way of rendering nature in shapes and forms that made them seem simultaneously familiar and new earned her a reputation as a pioneer of the form. Georgia blazed new trials for women artists and in 1946, O’Keeffe became the first woman to earn a retrospective at the Museum of Modern Art.
Twenty-four years later, a Whitney Museum of American Art retrospective exhibit introduced her work to a new generation. Fifteen years after that, O'Keeffe was included in the inaugural slate of artists chosen to receive the newly founded National Medal of Arts for her contribution to American culture.
Nice cover in relation to the essence of the flower. The famous Petunia, where she magnifies the flower's form to emphasize its shape --representative of nature and her usage of flowers as a motif.
Impeccably researched, Tripp’s writing is lyrical, sensuous, provocative, magical and poetic—the canvas, the brush, and the characters come to life. With sparks of history, culture, sex, love, romance, art, creativity, and strong emotions-- the words jump off each page. Historic fans will delight in the life of the artist icon, and equally impressed with the talented storyteller. Captivating!
On a personal note: The Georgia O'Keeffe Museum in Santa Fe is the first museum in the US dedicated to a female artist, and its research center sponsors significant fellowships for scholars of modern American art. Having spent time in Santa Fe, NW as well as the Southwest, if you get an opportunity, visit the Georgia O’Keeffe Museum (fascinating)!
Inspired by the life of the extraordinary iconic American artist, Georgia O’Keeffe, the "Mother of American modernism", and her love relationship with, photographer Alfred Stieglitz; beautifully drawn,
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Dawn Tripp evokes emotion, complexity, passion, and creativity with her stunning delivery of GEORGIA. Not only an exploration of O’Keeffe’s life, art, politics, and influence; however, more importantly, an example of the many tough challenges faced by women of the era. The 1920s marked a period of new freedom for women in America's modernizing urban culture.
Set in a world of change, at the end of WWI to the Roaring '20s and then the Great Depression, scrutinized both personally and professionally-- Readers will be swept away; from erotic, bold, intense, romantic, control, and sacrifice. Powerful and evocative!
"I found I could say things with color and shapes that I couldn't say any other way - things I had no words for." -Georgia O'Keeffe
Capturing the awareness, spirit and raw desires of two extraordinary artists-- Tripp creates imagining dialogue, and scenes between the two, as well as their circle of friends, family, and acquaintances—to create a mesmerizing blending; an infusion of fact and fiction—strong human dynamics of love and desires.
Georgia O’Keeffe is one of the most significant and intriguing artists of the twentieth century, known internationally for her boldly innovative art. Her distinct flowers, dramatic cityscapes, glowing landscapes, and images of bones against the stark desert sky are iconic and original contributions to American Modernism.
Early on, O’Keeffe mailed some of her highly abstract drawings to a friend in New York City, who showed them to Alfred Stieglitz. An art dealer and internationally known photographer, he was the first to exhibit her work in 1916. Soon thereafter, her life took on a drastic change--a passionate and often tumultuous relationship, to the desperate need to step out of his shadow.
Georgia O’Keeffe is a young woman, painting and teaching art in Texas, when she travels to New York to meet Alfred Stieglitz, the married gallery owner of 291, modern art promoter, and photographer. Their instantaneous attraction and powerful hunger for each other draw her into his world of art, sex, and passion, and she becomes his mistress and his muse. He would eventually become O’Keeffe’s husband.
The language of letters –Intimate, vulnerable, complex. A woman of exceptional passion, a rigorous intelligence, and a strong creative drive. From 1915 until 1946, some 25,000 pieces of paper were exchanged between two major 20th-century artists. Painter Georgia O'Keeffe and photographer Alfred Stieglitz wrote each other letters — sometimes two and three a day, some of them 40 pages long.
The correspondence tracks their relationship from acquaintances to admirers to lovers, man and wife, and their marriage struggles. As her own artistic fervor begins to push the boundaries of her life, we see Georgia transform into the powerfully independent woman she is known as today.
The author was inspired and fascinated behind the discrepancies in fact as well as varied interpretation of the woman behind the icon. As Tripp reiterates, the critical language repeatedly used to describe and define O’Keeffe’s work by male critics during her lifetime was an important inspiration for the novel. In gendered terms—“limiting our perception of her art and influence.”
From New York, 1917, Texas, to New Mexico, 1979, time stands still when he whispers, “Don’t move”, Georgia. “Whatever you are thinking, don’t lose it. Don’t move. Don’t blink. Nothing. “
“Perhaps Stieglitz is not my life, but a detour from it.”
O'Keeffe's distinctive way of rendering nature in shapes and forms that made them seem simultaneously familiar and new earned her a reputation as a pioneer of the form. Georgia blazed new trials for women artists and in 1946, O’Keeffe became the first woman to earn a retrospective at the Museum of Modern Art.
Twenty-four years later, a Whitney Museum of American Art retrospective exhibit introduced her work to a new generation. Fifteen years after that, O'Keeffe was included in the inaugural slate of artists chosen to receive the newly founded National Medal of Arts for her contribution to American culture.
Nice cover in relation to the essence of the flower. The famous Petunia, where she magnifies the flower's form to emphasize its shape --representative of nature and her usage of flowers as a motif.
Impeccably researched, Tripp’s writing is lyrical, sensuous, provocative, magical and poetic—the canvas, the brush, and the characters come to life. With sparks of history, culture, sex, love, romance, art, creativity, and strong emotions-- the words jump off each page. Historic fans will delight in the life of the artist icon, and equally impressed with the talented storyteller. Captivating!
On a personal note: The Georgia O'Keeffe Museum in Santa Fe is the first museum in the US dedicated to a female artist, and its research center sponsors significant fellowships for scholars of modern American art. Having spent time in Santa Fe, NW as well as the Southwest, if you get an opportunity, visit the Georgia O’Keeffe Museum (fascinating)!
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LibraryThing member lauriebrown54
This novel tells O’Keeffe’s story from her own point of view, as an old woman looking back on her life, starting from the time she was 27 and had sent some charcoal abstracts to Alfred Stieglitz in New York to get his opinion. A correspondence sprang up between then, and one day, after learning
A lot of the story is about Georgia’s love affair and marriage to Stieglitz; her work was shown and sold through him so he is inextricably bound to her professional life. Their marriage might have been passionate, but it was a troubled one. He wanted to support her work in every way (except by being someone she could trust, martially), but also seemed to fear her being on her own. They had a dependence on each other; she more dependent on him at the beginning; he more on her, later.
The writing is intense and rather amazing. Tripp wrote this after O’Keeffe and Stieglitz’s correspondence was published, and she combed their letters thoroughly. In some spots, she has used their own words. The thing that impressed me the most was the author’s ability to describe painting; how it felt to put charcoal or brush to paper or canvas, how the colors sat against each other, how the creative urge felt. How it felt different to do the lush flowers, the desert landscapes, the abstracts. I really felt that I was inside O’Keeffe’s mind as she thought back on her life.
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Stieglitz had mounted a show of her work, she walked away from her job as a teacher in Texas, withdrew her bank account, and took the train to New York to see it. It turned out that the show had just been dismantled; the studio, 291, was closing because of the war. But the relationship that had already started on paper bloomed in person, with Stieglitz rehanging her paintings just for her to see. By the time Georgia left to return to Texas, they were passionate about each other, a passion that would remain throughout their lives with all its ups and downs. A lot of the story is about Georgia’s love affair and marriage to Stieglitz; her work was shown and sold through him so he is inextricably bound to her professional life. Their marriage might have been passionate, but it was a troubled one. He wanted to support her work in every way (except by being someone she could trust, martially), but also seemed to fear her being on her own. They had a dependence on each other; she more dependent on him at the beginning; he more on her, later.
The writing is intense and rather amazing. Tripp wrote this after O’Keeffe and Stieglitz’s correspondence was published, and she combed their letters thoroughly. In some spots, she has used their own words. The thing that impressed me the most was the author’s ability to describe painting; how it felt to put charcoal or brush to paper or canvas, how the colors sat against each other, how the creative urge felt. How it felt different to do the lush flowers, the desert landscapes, the abstracts. I really felt that I was inside O’Keeffe’s mind as she thought back on her life.
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LibraryThing member Limelite
Tripp paints the complex portrait of the relationship between the painter O'Keeffe and her photographer husband, Alfred Stieglitz, with all the fine, spare, and bold artistry that they both expressed as the major figures of American fine arts in the first half of the last century.
Passionate,
Their love affair was not lifelong, ultimately they separated. The mystery to me is why they were together as long as they were, and the only factors I can look to for explanation are O'Keeffe's native loyalty and much later pity, and Stieglitz's rather drunken infatuation, and native laziness.
Tripp does not ignore developing O'Keefe as both personality and artist in her sensuous fictional biography of one of America's famous lover couples. She is brilliant when she inserts the reader into O'Keefe's internal life; just as brilliant in her descriptive passages, whether NYC or the New Mexican desert; and equally brilliant in defining her secondary characters who orbit the binary stars of her historical biography. Only O'Keefe's star outshines Stieglitz's in this book as in life, both as an artist and a fully realized person.
Please make Georgia a "must read" in 2016; it will linger in your literary memory long after you close its covers.
Passionate,
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assured, and totally dedicated to her art, O'Keeffe in this novel also is a woman of fierce loyalty, impatience, and conflicted feelings about her role as a woman. Tripp portrays her in a friendlier light than she does Stieglitz who, while the force behind making photography an accepted art form and maker and mentor of modern American artists, is also infantile, manipulative, and supremely egoistic.Their love affair was not lifelong, ultimately they separated. The mystery to me is why they were together as long as they were, and the only factors I can look to for explanation are O'Keeffe's native loyalty and much later pity, and Stieglitz's rather drunken infatuation, and native laziness.
Tripp does not ignore developing O'Keefe as both personality and artist in her sensuous fictional biography of one of America's famous lover couples. She is brilliant when she inserts the reader into O'Keefe's internal life; just as brilliant in her descriptive passages, whether NYC or the New Mexican desert; and equally brilliant in defining her secondary characters who orbit the binary stars of her historical biography. Only O'Keefe's star outshines Stieglitz's in this book as in life, both as an artist and a fully realized person.
Please make Georgia a "must read" in 2016; it will linger in your literary memory long after you close its covers.
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LibraryThing member nmarti
Oh my! What a wonderful chance to experience Georgia O'Keefe. This novel paints a compelling and believable picture of the passionate, creative, complex person she was. The reader also gets a good picture of the historical context of the Great Depression, the Wars, etc. Alfred Stieglitz, the
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talented photographer, philanderer, selfish and controlling mentor/lover/husband of Georgia O'Keefe is portrayed accurately, as I understand it. The passion between the two is always present, even as Georgia allows her self to come into greater focus and to be the independent person she really is. This is a very well-researched and well-written novel that beautifully describes the people, the writing, the art world and the works of art that come together in the life one of the most famous American artists. Show Less
LibraryThing member pomo58
In Georgia: A Novel of Georgia O'Keeffe Dawn Tripp presents a wonderful glimpse into the life, love and art of O'Keeffe. The sensuality and passion that is displayed in her art comes through in the voice Tripp gives to her. Like any good story, based on facts or not, there are characters who are
For those wed to any view of O'Keeffe but particularly one which stands in opposition to her passion and sensuality, this may be a difficult read. Rest assured, I believe that there are no great exaggerations in portraying her, both the available primary sources as well as a wealth of secondary sources provided a strong foundation for a suitable likeness of the author, acknowledging that it is still a work of fiction.
I would recommend this book to both biography lovers as well as historical fiction/fictionalized biography lovers. I also think that readers who simply enjoy a beautifully written story regardless of any basis in reality will find the story a compelling read.
Reviewed from a copy made available by the publisher via LibraryThing.
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somewhat less than likable as well as questionable decisions. If this were simply a work of fiction I would credit Tripp with giving the protagonist a realistic voice. Because this is historical fiction, I believe it is even more difficult to make a character represent the real person while still being the voice of the novel, since a writer does not have totally free reign to make her sound however the situations might otherwise dictate.For those wed to any view of O'Keeffe but particularly one which stands in opposition to her passion and sensuality, this may be a difficult read. Rest assured, I believe that there are no great exaggerations in portraying her, both the available primary sources as well as a wealth of secondary sources provided a strong foundation for a suitable likeness of the author, acknowledging that it is still a work of fiction.
I would recommend this book to both biography lovers as well as historical fiction/fictionalized biography lovers. I also think that readers who simply enjoy a beautifully written story regardless of any basis in reality will find the story a compelling read.
Reviewed from a copy made available by the publisher via LibraryThing.
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LibraryThing member CynthiaRobertson
From the first perfect sentence—I bought this house for the door.—author Dawn Tripp evokes a dark and solitary Georgia O’Keeffe for the reader. We meet a woman in pursuit of an ideal only she can perceive. Scenes of painting and drawing – descriptions of the light and how it falls, and of
Most impressive was the tension of the battle for recognition as an artist, and not as a female artist. We are given a picture of Georgia O’Keeffe as a woman who, even as she speaks at a gathering of political women of the day and exhorts then to seek out “self-actualization” first, rejects being referred to as a feminist. Tripp uses the biases and mindsets of reviewers to create tension throughout the middle of the book, especially after O’Keeffe’s lover, photographer Alfred Stieglitz, puts nude photos he has taken of her on public display. And as her own fame grows O’Keeffe’s reviewers who have seen the photos cannot separate the imagined woman in Stieglitz’ work from the real woman. The nudes, however artistic and lovely, affect how she is perceived and thought of, and she grows to deeply resent it.
“I’m an artist, Stieglitz. All this nonsense about the eternal feminine and essential woman and cleaving and unbosoming. This bosh they smear on my work. It rips away the value of what I’ve tried to do. You tell me not to let talk like this interfere with my work. Well, it does interfere. It will. How could it not?
This conflict was skillfully wrought, and will resonate with any woman who has ever felt over-shadowed by her connection with a man. At times the relationship between the two main characters becomes claustrophobic feeling, especially during the stretches of time at Stieglitz’ family home at Lake George, where they live a kind of bohemian lifestyle during summers, inviting other artists to come to stay.
The nature of Steiglitz’ character is supportive, but the gifts of his influence come at a price. He is controlling, and scoffs at what he doesn’t understand, seeking to direct O’Keeffe’s efforts and trajectory. (A scene set during the young Georgia’s life, where she allows a male peer to draw over a picture she had made, ‘correcting the trees’, - and young Georgia’s realization that she will never allow anyone to ever do that again - perfectly highlights the central theme of the novel.) In her characterization of Steiglitz Tripp aptly captures an early twentieth century male’s assumption of authority as a given, and we see the man’s tendency toward manipulating O’Keeffe, and witness him being a bit of a puppet-master with the lives of those other writers and painters around him as well. We get a strong sense of the oppressive air of being in his presence, and of Georgia’s struggle to be free of his overwhelming influence, even as she recognizes his particular talents, and her love for him. When he feels his ego threatened he plays head-games on their houseguests. And then there is the constant flirting with other women right under O’Keeffe’s nose, which takes its toll on her tranquility and by extension, her creativity.
“He prints several photographs of me. Her [O’Keeffe refers to the woman in the photos in third person throughout] face has begun to change. There’s a line between her brows, her lips have tightened, a slight downturn has appeared at the corners of her mouth. She is not the same. Her gaze is fixed, Spartan, that quiet exultant glimmer in her eyes is gone, replaced by a stern hardness that could be misread as cruelty.”
By the end of the novel readers may not like either character much. But they will certainly be left with a feeling of having known them as real flesh and blood people, with faults and dreams, and broken hearts. I found myself feeling a tender sadness and empathy for them. And the author made me long to visit Taos and a museum with O’Keeffe’s art on its walls.
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how the paint leaves the brush, – combined with a first-person present tense narrative, create an intimate portrait of the mysterious and elusive painter best known for her desert landscapes, skulls and bold flowers.Most impressive was the tension of the battle for recognition as an artist, and not as a female artist. We are given a picture of Georgia O’Keeffe as a woman who, even as she speaks at a gathering of political women of the day and exhorts then to seek out “self-actualization” first, rejects being referred to as a feminist. Tripp uses the biases and mindsets of reviewers to create tension throughout the middle of the book, especially after O’Keeffe’s lover, photographer Alfred Stieglitz, puts nude photos he has taken of her on public display. And as her own fame grows O’Keeffe’s reviewers who have seen the photos cannot separate the imagined woman in Stieglitz’ work from the real woman. The nudes, however artistic and lovely, affect how she is perceived and thought of, and she grows to deeply resent it.
“I’m an artist, Stieglitz. All this nonsense about the eternal feminine and essential woman and cleaving and unbosoming. This bosh they smear on my work. It rips away the value of what I’ve tried to do. You tell me not to let talk like this interfere with my work. Well, it does interfere. It will. How could it not?
This conflict was skillfully wrought, and will resonate with any woman who has ever felt over-shadowed by her connection with a man. At times the relationship between the two main characters becomes claustrophobic feeling, especially during the stretches of time at Stieglitz’ family home at Lake George, where they live a kind of bohemian lifestyle during summers, inviting other artists to come to stay.
The nature of Steiglitz’ character is supportive, but the gifts of his influence come at a price. He is controlling, and scoffs at what he doesn’t understand, seeking to direct O’Keeffe’s efforts and trajectory. (A scene set during the young Georgia’s life, where she allows a male peer to draw over a picture she had made, ‘correcting the trees’, - and young Georgia’s realization that she will never allow anyone to ever do that again - perfectly highlights the central theme of the novel.) In her characterization of Steiglitz Tripp aptly captures an early twentieth century male’s assumption of authority as a given, and we see the man’s tendency toward manipulating O’Keeffe, and witness him being a bit of a puppet-master with the lives of those other writers and painters around him as well. We get a strong sense of the oppressive air of being in his presence, and of Georgia’s struggle to be free of his overwhelming influence, even as she recognizes his particular talents, and her love for him. When he feels his ego threatened he plays head-games on their houseguests. And then there is the constant flirting with other women right under O’Keeffe’s nose, which takes its toll on her tranquility and by extension, her creativity.
“He prints several photographs of me. Her [O’Keeffe refers to the woman in the photos in third person throughout] face has begun to change. There’s a line between her brows, her lips have tightened, a slight downturn has appeared at the corners of her mouth. She is not the same. Her gaze is fixed, Spartan, that quiet exultant glimmer in her eyes is gone, replaced by a stern hardness that could be misread as cruelty.”
By the end of the novel readers may not like either character much. But they will certainly be left with a feeling of having known them as real flesh and blood people, with faults and dreams, and broken hearts. I found myself feeling a tender sadness and empathy for them. And the author made me long to visit Taos and a museum with O’Keeffe’s art on its walls.
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LibraryThing member DMO
I got off to a slow start with this book, but it quickly drew me in with O'Keeffe's voice: a strong, sure, somewhat prickly voice. I have been fortunate to see exhibits of her work, both on its own and with photos by Stieglitz, but this novel makes me think differently about it. Tripp 's prose is
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as focused and graceful as O'Keeffe ' s work. Highly recommended. Thanks to the ER Giveaway for a chance to review this. Show Less
LibraryThing member bookmuse56
A fictionalized biography that simmers with wry observations and introspection as Georgia O’Keeffe explores her relationship with Alfred Stieglitz in her quest for her personal and professional identity in a time where gender, class, and society provided expectations regardless of
While I had admired Georgia O’Keeffe’s paintings I knew very little about her life, so when I read the following in the author’s note – “Who was the woman, the artist, who made these works? And why was she not recognized for the sheer visionary power of these abstractions during her lifetime?” – I settled in to be immersed in Georgia’s world.
Based on her extensive research – the author writes the storyline in Georgia’s voice as she looks back over her life and decisions. I found myself underlying passages that I think will speak to many as they often look back on past events/situations making this a universal story yet also an intimate look at the essence of Georgia.
“A life is built of lies and magic, illusions bedded down with dreams. And in the end which haunts us most is the recollection of what we failed to see.”
“A bold glamour has begun to come into these small rooms. I’ve been here for less than a year, and already we are seen as an extraordinary couple – the two of us – the old photographer and is daring sibyl, his artist, his young muse, and I begin to see , too- as they can see – how in these deceptively simple images, he comes near to capturing some essence, some manifestations of a universal feminine.”
“There are those moments, always looking back on life, when you can see the points – fully lit in hindsight, real or imagined – where the path split, where you could have made a different choice and the cost of the choice you made.”
“Should I say that I am a landscape artist who has become famous for someone else’s portraits of me? That as my art hit the world it’s been instantaneously recast by those who see what they want, not what is there?”
“He once called our relationship a mixing of souls. But then again, he called it a love story. And it was far more – and less – than that.”
“Years from now, I will understand that this is the moment my life became wholly mine, more mine than it ever was before because I will never again let it be anything else.”
Overall, I savored this beautifully rendered well-crafted story filled with the incredibly raw, edgy emotions that enthralled me until the very last word. This is a wonderful addition to the fictionalized biography genre.
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individuality.While I had admired Georgia O’Keeffe’s paintings I knew very little about her life, so when I read the following in the author’s note – “Who was the woman, the artist, who made these works? And why was she not recognized for the sheer visionary power of these abstractions during her lifetime?” – I settled in to be immersed in Georgia’s world.
Based on her extensive research – the author writes the storyline in Georgia’s voice as she looks back over her life and decisions. I found myself underlying passages that I think will speak to many as they often look back on past events/situations making this a universal story yet also an intimate look at the essence of Georgia.
“A life is built of lies and magic, illusions bedded down with dreams. And in the end which haunts us most is the recollection of what we failed to see.”
“A bold glamour has begun to come into these small rooms. I’ve been here for less than a year, and already we are seen as an extraordinary couple – the two of us – the old photographer and is daring sibyl, his artist, his young muse, and I begin to see , too- as they can see – how in these deceptively simple images, he comes near to capturing some essence, some manifestations of a universal feminine.”
“There are those moments, always looking back on life, when you can see the points – fully lit in hindsight, real or imagined – where the path split, where you could have made a different choice and the cost of the choice you made.”
“Should I say that I am a landscape artist who has become famous for someone else’s portraits of me? That as my art hit the world it’s been instantaneously recast by those who see what they want, not what is there?”
“He once called our relationship a mixing of souls. But then again, he called it a love story. And it was far more – and less – than that.”
“Years from now, I will understand that this is the moment my life became wholly mine, more mine than it ever was before because I will never again let it be anything else.”
Overall, I savored this beautifully rendered well-crafted story filled with the incredibly raw, edgy emotions that enthralled me until the very last word. This is a wonderful addition to the fictionalized biography genre.
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LibraryThing member kremsa
Thank you to Random House for a free copy of this book. I absolutely loved this historical novel. Dawn Tripp did an amazing job researching Georgia O'Keeffe and telling the story of her complicated relationship with Steiglitz and her feelings about her art and how it was meant to be seen. As
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familiar as I am with O'Keeffe's work, I knew little about the person she was prior to reading this book. The author's writing is poetic and the descriptions of Georgia painting are so vivid and intense I felt like I was actually in the studio and could smell the paint. This book has led me to read another non-fiction book about Georgia O'Keeffe and has also made me pull out my paints! Show Less
LibraryThing member mrmapcase
This is a taut, nuanced portrayal of a beloved artist. There is just a raw feeling that is very realistic and gives the reader a glimpse into her life, both good and bad.
Free review copy.
Free review copy.
LibraryThing member thewanderingjew
Georgia, Dawn Tripp, author; Ann Marie Lee, narrator
When the book begins, there is a salacious sex scene which almost stopped me from continuing, but then I thought, this is about Georgia O’Keeffe, and I forged on. Also, because there were such excellent reviews of the book, I didn’t want to
Most readers would have understood that Georgia and Stieglitz fell in love without the explicit descriptions of their lovemaking. Most would probably assume that with a 25 year age difference, there had to be something like love drawing them together, especially since Georgia was aware that he was married at the time she began to pursue him, or that is how the author made it seem. The disparity in their ages became far more apparent when he was near 80, and she was in her 50’s, than when she kissed him at age 20 and he was 45. According to the author, she made the first approach to Stieglitz by surprising him with a passionate kiss when he saw her off at the train station after she visited him to discuss her art work. Georgia knew Stieglitz was famous; she knew he was married, so I had little sympathy for her later protestations when he was disloyal to her. She was guilty of breaking up his marriage, regardless of whether it was a happy one or not. Perhaps she saw an advantage to herself from a relationship with him, although later in life, she wondered if that relationship changed her career arc and the type of art she presented to the world.
Stieglitz is portrayed as a man with the typical excuse for a woman when he wants to cheat. He tells “the other woman” his marriage had ended years ago. However, at the time, they were still married. The author made it sound more like lust made their match and not so much true love. Also, one had to wonder if Georgia, a bright and fairly independent woman, even at that young age, was not aware of the influence he might have on her future success as an artist. Later on, it became obvious that Stieglitz was totally devoted to Georgia, but he was authoritarian, almost like a parent at times, and he had wayward ways and was unable to control his “small brain”. Why would a woman think that a man who would cheat with her would not cheat with others?
Also from the author’s depiction, Georgia seems selfish and driven by ego in later life. She seems a bit ungrateful for Stieglitz’s support and the author questions whether or not his relationship was good for her, in the end. Did he really make her famous or would she have become famous on her own? That is an unanswerable question. Georgia seems selfish and self-absorbed as time passes. Perhaps Stieglitz was too controlling, but somehow it felt that as she got more and more successful and needed him less, she also grew apart from him. Of course, his infidelity may have also played a part in that, but she was also someone with a roving eye.
In summary, I didn’t find much useful information in the book other than the fact that Stieglitz liked Georgia’s work and then they fell passionately or lustily in love. He directed her career. They had an affair that broke up his marriage. He wanted to marry her, but she resisted for years. Finally, when he was 62 and she was 37, they married. She traveled and tried different painting styles, many of which he rejected and she insisted upon. When she discovered Stieglitz was unfaithful, she began to distance herself from him more and more, although they still lived together, after a fashion. He controlled her career until she felt she no longer needed him, at which point, she asserted herself more strongly. After her nervous breakdown and eventual recovery, she grew even more apart from Stieglitz and they no longer lived together, but he continued to have great influence over her career. With his sudden death at the age of 82 (not so sudden at that age), she had some guilty feelings about having neglected him, refusing his last request for her to stay with him for just a little while. Did he know he was so sick? Suddenly, the tables turned, and she was now in charge of his work, not he in charge of hers. She continued to paint, but then, sadly, began to lose her sight until she was almost totally blind.
Perhaps the book would have appealed to me more if I had read the print version. The author’s overly lyrical and dramatic prose and the overly emotive narrator’s presentation in the audio version made it a chore, not a pleasure to listen. I was disappointed because my opinion of the artist changed. Previously, I had admired her for her work without a thought about her personal life. Now, I had negative feelings about a famous artist who had morphed into what seemed like a self-serving, narcissist with a short fuse who used those who could advance her career to her advantage.
Stieglitz, perhaps morally reprehensible, seemed more devoted to her than she was to him. Her morality was not even questionable since it seemed non-existent for that time period, and I had to wonder why she thought it was okay for her to cheat with another woman’s husband, but believed that it was not okay, or expected, for that already cheating husband to do it again.
In short, the reader over emotes, the author over dramatizes. For me, the only redeeming feature of the book was the information about O'Keeffe's artwork and Stieglitz's photography, although it seemed there was far too little emphasis on that and far too much on their sex lives. The book seemed more about Georgia’s sexual desires than her painting. At times, the book felt almost like a Harlequin novel with a half-dressed woman and man pictured on the cover.
When the book begins, there is a salacious sex scene which almost stopped me from continuing, but then I thought, this is about Georgia O’Keeffe, and I forged on. Also, because there were such excellent reviews of the book, I didn’t want to
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give up. Soon I learned that Georgia’s parents were dead and she was living with her youngest sister who was preparing to go off to college when she met Alfred Stieglitz who was smitten by her and her work. Then, for me, the book proceeded to go downhill as it got mired in scenes of passionate sex which added nothing to the narrative and offered only a distraction, perhaps to make up for the thinness of the information about her art. Most readers would have understood that Georgia and Stieglitz fell in love without the explicit descriptions of their lovemaking. Most would probably assume that with a 25 year age difference, there had to be something like love drawing them together, especially since Georgia was aware that he was married at the time she began to pursue him, or that is how the author made it seem. The disparity in their ages became far more apparent when he was near 80, and she was in her 50’s, than when she kissed him at age 20 and he was 45. According to the author, she made the first approach to Stieglitz by surprising him with a passionate kiss when he saw her off at the train station after she visited him to discuss her art work. Georgia knew Stieglitz was famous; she knew he was married, so I had little sympathy for her later protestations when he was disloyal to her. She was guilty of breaking up his marriage, regardless of whether it was a happy one or not. Perhaps she saw an advantage to herself from a relationship with him, although later in life, she wondered if that relationship changed her career arc and the type of art she presented to the world.
Stieglitz is portrayed as a man with the typical excuse for a woman when he wants to cheat. He tells “the other woman” his marriage had ended years ago. However, at the time, they were still married. The author made it sound more like lust made their match and not so much true love. Also, one had to wonder if Georgia, a bright and fairly independent woman, even at that young age, was not aware of the influence he might have on her future success as an artist. Later on, it became obvious that Stieglitz was totally devoted to Georgia, but he was authoritarian, almost like a parent at times, and he had wayward ways and was unable to control his “small brain”. Why would a woman think that a man who would cheat with her would not cheat with others?
Also from the author’s depiction, Georgia seems selfish and driven by ego in later life. She seems a bit ungrateful for Stieglitz’s support and the author questions whether or not his relationship was good for her, in the end. Did he really make her famous or would she have become famous on her own? That is an unanswerable question. Georgia seems selfish and self-absorbed as time passes. Perhaps Stieglitz was too controlling, but somehow it felt that as she got more and more successful and needed him less, she also grew apart from him. Of course, his infidelity may have also played a part in that, but she was also someone with a roving eye.
In summary, I didn’t find much useful information in the book other than the fact that Stieglitz liked Georgia’s work and then they fell passionately or lustily in love. He directed her career. They had an affair that broke up his marriage. He wanted to marry her, but she resisted for years. Finally, when he was 62 and she was 37, they married. She traveled and tried different painting styles, many of which he rejected and she insisted upon. When she discovered Stieglitz was unfaithful, she began to distance herself from him more and more, although they still lived together, after a fashion. He controlled her career until she felt she no longer needed him, at which point, she asserted herself more strongly. After her nervous breakdown and eventual recovery, she grew even more apart from Stieglitz and they no longer lived together, but he continued to have great influence over her career. With his sudden death at the age of 82 (not so sudden at that age), she had some guilty feelings about having neglected him, refusing his last request for her to stay with him for just a little while. Did he know he was so sick? Suddenly, the tables turned, and she was now in charge of his work, not he in charge of hers. She continued to paint, but then, sadly, began to lose her sight until she was almost totally blind.
Perhaps the book would have appealed to me more if I had read the print version. The author’s overly lyrical and dramatic prose and the overly emotive narrator’s presentation in the audio version made it a chore, not a pleasure to listen. I was disappointed because my opinion of the artist changed. Previously, I had admired her for her work without a thought about her personal life. Now, I had negative feelings about a famous artist who had morphed into what seemed like a self-serving, narcissist with a short fuse who used those who could advance her career to her advantage.
Stieglitz, perhaps morally reprehensible, seemed more devoted to her than she was to him. Her morality was not even questionable since it seemed non-existent for that time period, and I had to wonder why she thought it was okay for her to cheat with another woman’s husband, but believed that it was not okay, or expected, for that already cheating husband to do it again.
In short, the reader over emotes, the author over dramatizes. For me, the only redeeming feature of the book was the information about O'Keeffe's artwork and Stieglitz's photography, although it seemed there was far too little emphasis on that and far too much on their sex lives. The book seemed more about Georgia’s sexual desires than her painting. At times, the book felt almost like a Harlequin novel with a half-dressed woman and man pictured on the cover.
Show Less
LibraryThing member kdabra4
This is my #1 favorite cover for my books read in 2015, so gorgeous, especially for an ARC. (The finished book actually comes out 3/29/16.) I could look at that beautiful flower all day. It's difficult at times, though, to read descriptions of colors and flowers and paintings, without having the
Here we see what was beneath O'Keeffe's own surface, what made her become what she was. Much of it can be attributed to Alfred Stieglitz, who discovered her and became her mentor, lover, and husband. They shared their passion for each other and their art. Throughout their relationship, though, she fought to have others see her art for itself, for women as individuals and not as extensions of anyone else, not what Stieglitz or art critics wanted to read into it. The writing was superb and the storyline interesting, although it did feel at times repetitive as it recounted her yearly treks from NYC to Lake George and back again, until she and her art finally discovered the Taos area, where she was reborn and then spent half her time there painting in solitude.
Have been a fan of hers for a long time, so reading this ARC was a special gift. The final chapter was itself a lovely piece of art, a masterpiece, given us by the author and it almost brought me to tears. Much thanks to LibraryThing!
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finished artwork in front of you for reference. So I did a lot of Googling. I wonder if the finished book will include some of her pieces; I do think it would add so much. O'Keeffe was an amazingly talented artist. I'm not crazy about her skulls, but underneath those skulls and in her other paintings I see nature in all its glory. Here we see what was beneath O'Keeffe's own surface, what made her become what she was. Much of it can be attributed to Alfred Stieglitz, who discovered her and became her mentor, lover, and husband. They shared their passion for each other and their art. Throughout their relationship, though, she fought to have others see her art for itself, for women as individuals and not as extensions of anyone else, not what Stieglitz or art critics wanted to read into it. The writing was superb and the storyline interesting, although it did feel at times repetitive as it recounted her yearly treks from NYC to Lake George and back again, until she and her art finally discovered the Taos area, where she was reborn and then spent half her time there painting in solitude.
Have been a fan of hers for a long time, so reading this ARC was a special gift. The final chapter was itself a lovely piece of art, a masterpiece, given us by the author and it almost brought me to tears. Much thanks to LibraryThing!
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LibraryThing member JanaRose1
This book follows the life of Georgia O’Keeffe and her relationship with Stieglitz, a famous photographer and discoverer of artists. After sending Stieglitz her work, and many letters later, Georgia travels to New York to visit him. She becomes firsts his mistress and later his wife. Their
This was a fascinating book. It was well written and very realistic. I felt like I knew Georgia, as her life spun from one direction to another. I look forward to reading more from this author. Overall, highly recommended.
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relationship is a bit stormy, as defined by their intense love-making and conflicts over the promotion of Georgia’s art.This was a fascinating book. It was well written and very realistic. I felt like I knew Georgia, as her life spun from one direction to another. I look forward to reading more from this author. Overall, highly recommended.
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LibraryThing member kdabra4
Out of all my books read in 2015, this one has my #1 favorite cover, so gorgeous, especially for an ARC. (The finished book actually comes out 3/29/16.) I could look at that beautiful flower all day. It's difficult at times, though, to read descriptions of colors and flowers and paintings, without
Here we see what was beneath O'Keeffe's own surface, what made her become what she was. Much of it can be attributed to Alfred Stieglitz, who discovered her and became her mentor, lover, and husband. They shared their passion for each other and their art. Throughout their relationship, though, she fought to have others see her art for itself, for women as individuals and not as extensions of anyone else, not what Stieglitz or art critics wanted to read into it. The writing was superb and the storyline interesting, although it did feel at times repetitive as it recounted her yearly treks from NYC to Lake George and back again, until she and her art finally discovered the Taos area, where she was reborn and then spent half her time there painting in solitude.
Have been a fan of hers for a long time, so reading this ARC was a special gift. The final chapter was itself a lovely piece of art, a masterpiece, given us by the author and it almost brought me to tears. Much thanks to LibraryThing!
Show More
having the finished artwork in front of you for reference. So I did a lot of Googling. I wonder if the finished book will include some of her pieces; I do think it would add so much. O'Keeffe was an amazingly talented artist. I'm not crazy about her skulls, but underneath those skulls and in her other paintings I see nature in all its glory. Here we see what was beneath O'Keeffe's own surface, what made her become what she was. Much of it can be attributed to Alfred Stieglitz, who discovered her and became her mentor, lover, and husband. They shared their passion for each other and their art. Throughout their relationship, though, she fought to have others see her art for itself, for women as individuals and not as extensions of anyone else, not what Stieglitz or art critics wanted to read into it. The writing was superb and the storyline interesting, although it did feel at times repetitive as it recounted her yearly treks from NYC to Lake George and back again, until she and her art finally discovered the Taos area, where she was reborn and then spent half her time there painting in solitude.
Have been a fan of hers for a long time, so reading this ARC was a special gift. The final chapter was itself a lovely piece of art, a masterpiece, given us by the author and it almost brought me to tears. Much thanks to LibraryThing!
Show Less
LibraryThing member LivelyLady
Historical fiction based on written memoirs, biographies and the letters of artist, Georgia O'Keef. The basis of the story was her relationship with photographer, Al Steiglitz, who was her friend, her lover and then her husband. This was a light, but interesting read. I wonder what her life would
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be like if lived now, a century later. Show Less
LibraryThing member Dianekeenoy
I've always loved Georgia O'Keefe but didn't know anything about her other than the fact that I loved her art. This is fiction but is closely based on letters written between Georgia and Alfred Steiglitz. I had decided to skim a few pages and just return it to the library unread since I have so
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many new books of my own that I wanted to read. Well, one page lead to another and now the book is finished and that's all I accomplished on this rainy, nasty day! So, now I will return to the library tomorrow completed. The book starts in 1916 when Georgia, an unknown young art teacher goes to New York to meet Steiglitz, a famous photographer and art dealer who had discovered her early works. She is quickly pulled into his sophisticated world, as his protégé, mistress and muse. And, this is in 1916, can you imagine? It's just amazing that in those years, someone like Georgia O'Keeffe was able to do what she wanted and become the strong woman and artist we knew about. Now, I want to read more about her and will be looking for her memoirs as well as biographies. Show Less
LibraryThing member paleporter
I read all her books. She knows how to shuck her shadow and then step back into it, as she would say. I enjoyed the take on O'keeffe's persona, but I especially enjoyed the take on Alfred Stieglitz. I also recommend her books, Moon Tide, and Open Water
LibraryThing member hubblegal
I’ve always been fascinated with the work of Georgia O’Keeffe. Her huge, gorgeously colored flowers as well as her work with animal bones are truly amazing. Many believe that her flowers are erotic though I’ve read that Ms. O’Keeffe consistently battled against this interpretation. I am
I struggled with the first half of the book, several times wanting to give it up. If you enjoy reading about a man and a woman who are constantly grabbing at each other, then this is the book for you. It was like a Harlequin romance where the author is looking for any excuse to insert sex into the page. I understand that the author was trying to convey the passion between Georgia and Alfred Stieglitz; however, she went way overboard. Passion can be written in such a sensual manner when crafted correctly. Ms. Tripp’s description of the passion between these two comes across as crass and common.
The second half of the book improved since their relationship had cooled and Ms. O’Keeffe was branching out on her own. I found all the references to Ms. O’Keeffe’s paintings to be interesting but there really wasn’t anything new revealed about her life and work. There are some worthy glimpses of Ms. O’Keeffe in this book but you have to look for them. It’s mostly a book about the difficult relationship between O’Keeffe and Stieglitz. It’s not a book I can recommend to anyone.
I won this book in a book giveaway.
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sure that her intent will be debated for years. Regardless of her intent, because of that label of having created erotic art, when I saw this historical novel, I was afraid that the sex would the focus of the book. I decided not to read it but then I received it in the mail with a letter from the publisher saying that I had won the book in a giveaway although I have no recollection of ever entering a giveaway for this book. A couple of friends of mine was gushing over the book so I picked it up with a more open mind, hoping that Ms. O’Keeffe’s life would be accurately portrayed. I struggled with the first half of the book, several times wanting to give it up. If you enjoy reading about a man and a woman who are constantly grabbing at each other, then this is the book for you. It was like a Harlequin romance where the author is looking for any excuse to insert sex into the page. I understand that the author was trying to convey the passion between Georgia and Alfred Stieglitz; however, she went way overboard. Passion can be written in such a sensual manner when crafted correctly. Ms. Tripp’s description of the passion between these two comes across as crass and common.
The second half of the book improved since their relationship had cooled and Ms. O’Keeffe was branching out on her own. I found all the references to Ms. O’Keeffe’s paintings to be interesting but there really wasn’t anything new revealed about her life and work. There are some worthy glimpses of Ms. O’Keeffe in this book but you have to look for them. It’s mostly a book about the difficult relationship between O’Keeffe and Stieglitz. It’s not a book I can recommend to anyone.
I won this book in a book giveaway.
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LibraryThing member pinklady60
A wonderful novel based on the life of Georgia O’Keeffe, an American artist in the early to mid-1900s, known for her paintings of flowers and Southwest landscapes. The book focuses mainly on her involvement, both personal and professional, with photographer Alfred Stieglitz and how he shaped her
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life and her work. Using real-life letters and diary entries, the author does a good job of conveying their passionate, but complicated, relationship. As all good historical novels should, this book left me wanting to know more about the artist Show Less
Awards
Massachusetts Book Award (Must-Read (Longlist) — Fiction — 2017)
Language
Original language
English
Physical description
336 p.; 9.5 inches
ISBN
140006953X / 9781400069538