Georgia O’Keeffe Quotes on Art

Georgia O’Keeffe was an American painter of abstracted floral forms and the arid landscapes of New Mexico. She is best known for her large abstract paintings and collages. She produced paintings, watercolors, prints, and works on paper. Famous Georgia O’Keeffe paintings include “Jimson Weed”, “Blue and Green Music”, “Ram’s Head White Hollyhock and Little Hills”, “Red Canna”, and “Series 1, No. 8”.

Mini biography: Born Georgia O’Keeffe on the 15th of November, 1887 in Sun Prairie, Wisconsin, United States of America. Her mother was Ida (Totto) O’Keeffe and her father was Francis Calyxtus O’Keeffe. Georgia O’Keeffe died on the 6th of March, 1986 in Santa Fe, New Mexico, U.S.A. O’Keeffe was 98 years old when she passed away.

Check out these books on Georgia O’Keeffe: “Georgia O’Keeffe: A Life“, “Georgia O’Keeffe: Watercolors“, and “Georgia O’Keeffe: One Hundred Flowers: 30th Anniversary Edition with slipcase“.

Famous Georgia O’Keeffe Art Quotes

So I said to myself, I’ll paint what I see-what the flower is to me but I’ll paint it big and they will be surprised into taking the time to look at it-I will make even busy New Yorkers take time to see what I see of flowers. Georgia O’Keeffe

The men liked to put me down as the best woman painter. I think I’m one of the best painters. Georgia O’Keeffe

Where I was born and where and how I have lived is unimportant. It is what I have done with where I have been that should be of interest. Georgia O’Keeffe

I wish people were all trees and I think I could enjoy them then. Georgia O’Keeffe

I get on pretty well with my own company. Juan (Hamilton) moved into my world and little by little he got into things. He knows more about my affairs than I do. Georgia O’Keeffe

I don’t very much enjoy looking at paintings in general. I know too much about them. I take them apart. Georgia O’Keeffe

I’ve been absolutely terrified every moment of my life and I’ve never let it keep me from doing a single thing that I wanted to do. Georgia O’Keeffe

I have lived up there at the end of the world by myself a long time. You walk around with your thing out in the field and nobody cares. It’s nice. Georgia O’Keeffe

If you take a flower in your hand and really look at it, it’s your world for a moment. Georgia O’Keeffe

I have already settled it for myself so flattery and criticism go down the same drain and I am quite free. Georgia O’Keeffe

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

Whether you succeed or not is irrelevant, there is no such thing. Making your unknown known is the important thing and keeping the unknown always beyond you. Georgia O’Keeffe

To create one’s own world in any of the arts takes courage. Georgia O’Keeffe

Objective painting is not good painting unless it is good in the abstract sense. A hill or tree cannot make a good painting just because it is a hill or tree. It is lines and colors put together so that they may say something. Georgia O’Keeffe

I think it’s so foolish for people to want to be happy. Happy is so momentary.. you’re happy for an instant and then you start thinking again. Interest is the most important thing in life; happiness is temporary, but interest is continuous. Georgia O’Keeffe

More on Woman Artist Georgia O’Keeffe

How has Georgia O’Keeffe influenced your art making? Is she one of your favorite woman artists? Did you know her work titled Jimson Weed sold for $44,405,000 in 2014 to the Walmart billionaire Alice Walton? This was the highest amount to be paid for the work of a female artist. Let us know what you think about Georgia O’Keeffe in the comments below.

For more on the famous American female painter here’s three excellent Georgia O’Keeffe books: “Georgia O’Keeffe: A Life“, “Georgia O’Keeffe: Watercolors“, and “Georgia O’Keeffe: One Hundred Flowers: 30th Anniversary Edition with slipcase“.