Sotheby's Is Auctioning Off Georgia O'Keeffe's Rare Pottery
Georgia O'Keeffe is best known for her bold paintings of colorful wildflowers, New Mexico's landscape, and a New York skyscraper. Just as beautiful, but perhaps less well known, is O'Keefe's pottery, and if you've ever dreamed of owning some of O'Keeffe's incredible work and are a fan of ceramics, you're in luck: Sotheby's will be auctioning off six minimalist clay pots created by the artist, ranging in price from $7,000 to $15,000, as reported by House Beautiful.
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When O'Keeffe started to lose her eyesight in her mid-80s, she decided to take up pottery, though she had never been formally trained. Art historians presume that her close friend Juan Hamilton, who was a skilled ceramist, taught O'Keeffe and influenced her work. "When seeing became more difficult it was the medium she picked up for artistic expression," said Kayla Carlsen, head of Sotheby's American Art. "I do think that she took it seriously. It was a process that she found engaging and enjoyed, and she was prolific. There is a large body of work produced circa 1980 with Juan's inspiration and assistance."
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Hundreds of pieces of her pottery were left with Hamilton, and while he held on to her work for many years, he also donated a significant amount to the Georgia O'Keeffe Museum in Santa Fe, New Mexico. "It has been a true privilege to live with and care for these works for many years," Hamilton said in a statement. "But it is now time to allow others the opportunity to enjoy and learn from these treasures. I hope that they will inspire a new generation of admirers and collectors of O'Keeffe, Stieglitz, and their inimitable circle, as they have long inspired me."
In addition to O'Keeffe's pottery and other drawings, Sotheby's is also selling artwork from photographer Alfred Stiegltiz and Hamilton himself. The auction begins on March 5, 2020 at 10 a.m. EST.
