Yellow Calla

Georgia O'Keeffe, Yellow Calla, 1926, oil on fiberboard, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the Woodward Foundation, 1978.34
Georgia O'Keeffe, Yellow Calla, 1926, oil on fiberboard, 912 34 in. (22.932.4 cm), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the Woodward Foundation, 1978.34

Artwork Details

Title
Yellow Calla
Date
1926
Dimensions
912 34 in. (22.932.4 cm)
Credit Line
Gift of the Woodward Foundation
Mediums
Mediums Description
oil on fiberboard
Classifications
Highlights
Subjects
  • Object — flower — lily
Object Number
1978.34

Artwork Description

The waxy, long-stemmed calla lily captivated Georgia O'Keeffe in the 1920s. The calla lily was a popular subject in American art in the 1920s and 1930s, when it was fashionable to read sexual and psychological values into the blooms. (Lynes, Georgia O'Keeffe and the Calla Lily in American Art, 1860-1940, 2002). But O'Keeffe objected to this, and insisted that the point of painting any flower so closely and hypnotically was to make people see it for the first time.

Works by this artist (37 items)

Childe Hassam, Spring, Navesink Highlands, 1908, oil on canvas, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of William T. Evans, 1909.7.27
Spring, Navesink Highlands
Date1908
oil on canvas
On view
Childe Hassam, The South Ledges, Appledore, 1913, oil on canvas, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of John Gellatly, 1929.6.62
The South Ledges, Appledore
Date1913
oil on canvas
On view
Childe Hassam, Maréchal Niel Roses, 1919, oil on canvas, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of John Gellatly, 1929.6.58
Maréchal Niel Roses
Date1919
oil on canvas
On view
Childe Hassam, Pomona, 1900, oil on canvas, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of John Gellatly, 1929.6.60
Pomona
Date1900
oil on canvas
On view