Flowering Plant

June 1918

Moves to New York at Stieglitz’s invitation

Stieglitz invited her to live and work in New York, promising a quiet studio and to underwrite a year of painting; to accept she resigned from teaching at West Texas State. He discouraged her use of watercolour, which was associated with amateur women artists.

1929

First journey to New Mexico

At the suggestion of Maria Chabot and Mabel Dodge Luhan she travelled by train with her friend, the painter Rebecca (Beck) Strand, wife of Paul Strand: in Taos Luhan took them in and gave them studios. From then on O’Keeffe visited New Mexico almost every year, often for months, returning each winter to New York to exhibit at Stieglitz’s gallery.

1946

First woman artist to have a retrospective at MoMA

Her second retrospective of the 1940s was held at the Museum of Modern Art in New York: O’Keeffe was the first woman artist to be given a retrospective there.

13 July 1946

Death of Stieglitz

Shortly after O’Keeffe arrived in New Mexico for the summer, Stieglitz suffered a cerebral thrombosis (stroke); she flew to New York at once. He died on 13 July 1946; she buried his ashes at Lake George and spent the next three years, mostly in New York, settling his estate.

1949

Moves permanently to New Mexico

Three years after Stieglitz’s death she settled permanently in New Mexico, dividing her time between Ghost Ranch and the Abiquiú house she made into her studio; she lived there for about forty years.

6 March 1986

Died