Although she attended the Art Institute of Chicago, she acknowledges that what she learnt there did not help her much. Her fantastic talent is perhaps the main reason she became successful.
What's the Meaning of Georgia Light Iris Painting and other Flowers?
In most cases, flowers are likened to the feminine gender. Still, not all flower paintings have similar meanings as various artists paint them. When it comes to Georgia O’Keeffe works, the plant’s reproductive systems she drew depicts a hidden meaning as we will find out in a few.
Despite some heated denials, it is now evident that some of Georgia’s paintings represented the vagina and not a ‘real flower’ as she wanted people to believe. While it may seem old-fashioned in this era, Georgia had no intentions to titillate or offend her viewers. Instead, she wanted to distinguish herself from the 20th century American masculine drawing.
Generally, she wanted to set herself apart from her present-day male artists by producing drawings that would seem both innately feminine and audaciously sexual. In addition, some painting experts argue that Georgia flowers should be depicted as part and parcel of lesbian tradition that goes back to the 18th century as they believe that O’Keeffe was inclined toward women.
The Symbolism of Georgia O’Keeffe Flowers
Georgia O’Keeffe regularly stated that the flowers' colour and form was much more important than the subject matter, meaning she was perhaps interested in capturing the flower beauty and natural form. Most feminist critics have praised her paintings where they say it captures feminist themes ahead of their occurrence.
Unquestionably, in the era in which she was painting, Georgia happened to be in a male-dominated world and regularly reminded of her gender. Probably, that’s the reason she decided to draw feminine-based arts. Remember that in most of her paintings, she primarily paid attention to the flowers and plants' internal view, including the reproductive areas and stamens. These inclusions have made the present-day critics allege that there seems to be sexuality and reproduction in most of her arts despite her protestations.
Ideally, flowers are regularly linked to women, love, softness and sexuality. A good number of Georgia’s arts comprises of a couple of flowers on the large canvas. This way, O’Keeffe seems to capture a beautiful nature. It is quite tricky to say precisely what she intended to depict with her flower drawings. Yes, these paintings are the most iconic pieces amongst her many pieces, and that’s what we remember her for.
