Georgia O’Keeffe Museum, New Mexico Museum of Art Partner to Keep Sculpture on View
‘Abstraction’ will be on view in the O’Shaughnessy Sculpture Garden during construction of the New O’Keeffe
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE–February 8, 2024 (Santa Fe, NM)–Visitors to Santa Fe will continue to see Georgia O’Keeffe’s largest sculpture thanks to a partnership between the Georgia O’Keeffe Museum (GOKM) and New Mexico Museum of Art (NMMA). While the Georgia O’Keeffe Museum prepares for the construction of a reimagined campus, this partnership has provided a temporary home for Abstraction, a 9-foot tall cast aluminum sculpture by O’Keeffe, in the New Mexico Museum of Art’s O’Shaughnessy Sculpture Garden.
“The New Mexico Museum of Art has long had O’Keeffe works on their walls and we are so thankful to them for providing Abstraction a temporary home,” Georgia O’Keeffe Museum Director Dr. Cody Hartley said. “While we begin to build our new campus, we are very fortunate to have great community partners like the Museum of Art that will keep Abstraction on display and out of storage for all who want to enjoy its beauty and presence.”
Abstraction, designed in 1946 and cast from 1979-1980, has most recently been on display in the garden of the Georgia O’Keeffe Museum Research Center at the Otero-Bergere House in downtown Santa Fe. Previously, it had been displayed at O’Keeffe’s Home & Studio in Abiquiú and the patio of the Georgia O’Keeffe Museum. Once the New O’Keeffe is complete in 2026, the sculpture will be moved to a permanent spot.
Abstraction is one of 12 sculptures in the O’Shaughnessy Sculpture Garden which is located at 107 W. Palace Avenue in Santa Fe, just blocks from the GOKM Research Center at the Otero-Bergere House. Other sculptures on display include Bill Barrett’s Hugging, 1981, Richard Beckman’s Black Heart II, n.d., and Bruno Romeda’s Untitled Circle, 2003.
“It’s no secret that many come to Santa Fe to see O’Keeffe’s work. The paintings in our collection are among her most iconic works of New Mexican landscapes, and the sculpture is a wonderful addition for our visitors to see,” said New Mexico Museum of Art Director Dr. Mark White.
O’Keeffe designed three series of sculptures over the span of her 60-year career. The spiral form was inspired by a ram’s horn the artist collected which is on display in the Georgia O’Keeffe: Making a Life exhibition, which is on view through 2024. The Georgia O’Keeffe Museum at 217 Johnson Street will remain open to visitors during construction of the new building at 123 Grant Avenue.
The sculpture can be viewed with a ticket to the New Mexico Museum of Art available online at nmartmuseum.org/visit/.
For media inquiries, contact:
Renee Lucero
Public Relations Manager, Georgia O’Keeffe Museum
505-946-1063
rlucero@gokm.org
Ash Espinoza
Public Relations Specialist, New Mexico Department of Cultural Affairs
505-479-0906
ashley.espinoza@dca.nm.gov
Image credits:
TOP: Georgia O’Keeffe. Abstraction, 1946, 1979-1980. Cast aluminum, 118 x 118 x 57 3/4 inches. Georgia O’Keeffe Museum. Gift of the Burnett Foundation and the Georgia O’Keeffe Foundation. © Georgia O’Keeffe Museum. [1997.4.1]
BOTTOM: Georgia O’Keeffe Abstraction Photographs, ca. 1979-1980. Georgia O’Keeffe Museum. © Georgia O’Keeffe Museum.
ABOUT THE GEORGIA O’KEEFFE MUSEUM: Since 1997, the Georgia O’Keeffe Museum celebrates the art, life, and independent spirit of Georgia O’Keeffe. Located in Santa Fe, New Mexico, where Georgia O’Keeffe lived the final decades of her life, the O’Keeffe has sites and experiences in two historic destinations, Santa Fe and Abiquiú. For more information, please visit okeeffemuseum.org
ABOUT THE NEW MEXICO MUSEUM OF ART:
The New Mexico Museum of Art is a division of the Department of Cultural Affairs. Programs and exhibits are supported by the Museum of New Mexico Foundation and its donors. The mission of the Museum of Art is to create authentic experiences that foster a deeper understanding and enjoyment of art throughout our state. With a collection of more than 20,000 pieces of work, the museum brings the art of the world to New Mexico and the art of New Mexico to the world
