Georgia O’Keefe and Her Dogs
“Georgia O-Keeffe” by Dirk Kolassa, 2012
Georgia O’Keefe was one of the trailblazers in art. Not only did she produce beautiful paintings using bold colours, but in her time (1887 - 1986) it was still unusual for a woman to become an artist, especiallyin her younger years when she just started out. However, she always felt a strong connection to nature, and when she discovered New Mexico, she fell in love with the colors of the landscape around her, the stones, the earth and the animal bones she found there. From what I can piece together, it seems her lifelong love affair with Chow Chow’s also started here, in New Mexico.
Georgia with her dogs at Abiquiu, New Mexico, 1962, photograph by Todd Webb.
Georgia’s first pet was a cat, followed by a large, black French Poodle who died at a very young age. When she moved to New MExico, her new neighbour thought she seemed lonely, and gifted her with two black Chow Chow puppies, who instantly stole her heart. She would reportedly spend many hours wandering around her new landscape, accompanied by her new dogs “Bo” and “Chia”, both of whom also appear in many of her paintings. Her bond with her “little people”, as she referred to her canine companions, was a very strong one, so much so that even after they died she wrote about them in letters to her friends and family, and she always felt they were still with her.
Georgia O’Keeffe grooms her dogs, 1966. Photograph by John Loengard
The “little people” slept in Georgia’s bed at night, and during the day they were always around. The artist was so devoted to her Choe Choe’s thatshe took them into considerationwhen decisions had to be made, like going on a hot car drive (she refused) or installing a new heater (also refused, due to the fact that it wouldhave to be in her dog’s favourite sleeping place and wouold hence disturb them) and she reportdly had a shwal made fom their shedded summer coats.
Chow licking face, photograph by Georgia O’Keeffe Museum
After Bo and Chia died (Bo was hit by a truck), Georgia also had another red Chow, who died shortly before she herself passed away. All in all, it seems thatGeorgia was devoted to the Chow Chow breed, and she was blessed with six of these magnificnet dogs in her lifetime. In an interview in her later years, Georgia said, “It seems to be my mission in life to wait on a dog.”
Georgia O’Keefe’s red chow. Photograph by Goergia O’Keeffe Museum.
Georgia O’Keeffe and her Chow. Photograph by John Loengard.
Reference Articles and Great Books for Further Reading
Pets and Their Famous Humans, Ana Gallo and Katherine Quinn, Prestel, 2019.
https://www.anothermag.com/design-living/2391/georgia-okeeffes-chow-chows#:~:text=But%20it%20wasn%27t%20until,fondly%20as%20"little%20people".
https://chowtales.com/georgia-okeeffe-content-yet/
https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2016/jul/01/georgia-okeeffe-tate-modern-exhibition-wild-beauty