For five decades she repeated, changed, observed and abstracted her motifs: Georgia O'Keeffe's life's work is unmistakably hers, yet not monotonous. She took her time, which she certainly had in the 99 years of her life: from 9 April, the Museum of Modern Art will be showing a solo exhibition of how she dealt with this precious resource.
Georgia O'Keeffe (1887-1986) not only lived a long life, her oeuvre also spanned five decades. She is remembered primarily for her flower paintings, but she also produced a range of works from charcoal and pencil to watercolour and pastel. She developed, repeated and changed her motifs, observed and abstracted them: »To see takes time«, she once said. The Museum of Modern Art in New York chose this wisdom for the title of a solo exhibition that will bring together O'Keeffe's works on paper and important paintings. From 9 April, Georgia O'Keeffe. To See Takes Time offers a rare glimpse into the artist's various working techniques while encouraging visitors to give themselves time to contemplate.
Some works date from O'Keeffe's pioneering period of experimentation between 1915 and 1918, when she alternated bold lines with organic landscapes, frank nudes and radically abstract charcoal drawings (Specials). She captured both natural forms and rhythms – such as the ever-changing perspective from an aeroplane window. Her flower series from the 1930s are juxtaposed with the portraits of the 1940s and the aerial photographs of the 1950s. The varied solo show can be seen until 12 August.
It was one of the most moving decades in the history of the United Kingdom: the 1980s, characterized by strikes, protests and AIDS. Photographers documented this period and in some cases became political activists themselves through their images. The exhibition The 80s: Photographing Britain opens on November 21 at the Tate Britain in London.
It is in the context of functional architecture in urban spaces that Guido Klumpe finds the motifs that he stages with his camera as the poetry of the profane. His picturesque images unfold an opulent effect with a reduced formal language, showing us the beauty of the moment in the flow of everyday life.
