Georgia: A Novel of Georgia O'Keeffe

by Dawn Tripp

NATIONAL BESTSELLER • In a dazzling work of historical fiction in the vein of Nancy Horan’s Loving Frank, Dawn Tripp brings to life Georgia O’Keeffe, her love affair with photographer Alfred Stieglitz, and her quest to become an independent artist.

This is not a love story. If it were, we would have the same story. But he has his, and I have mine.

In 1916, Georgia O’Keeffe is a young, unknown art teacher when she travels to New York to meet Stieglitz, the famed photographer and art dealer, who has discovered O’Keeffe’s work and exhibits it in his gallery. Their connection is instantaneous. O’Keeffe is quickly drawn into Stieglitz’s sophisticated world, becoming his mistress, protégé, and muse, as their attraction deepens into an intense and tempestuous relationship and his photographs of her, both clothed and nude, create a sensation.

Yet as her own creative force develops, Georgia begins to push back against what critics and others are saying about her and her art. And soon she must make difficult choices to live a life she believes in.

A breathtaking work of the imagination, Georgia is the story of a passionate young woman, her search for love and artistic freedom, the sacrifices she will face, and the bold vision that will make her a legend.

Praise for Georgia

“Complex and original . . . Georgia conveys O’Keeffe’s joys and disappointments, rendering both the woman and the artist with keenness and consideration.”—The New York Times Book Review

“As magical and provocative as O’Keeffe’s lush paintings of flowers that upended the art world in the 1920s . . . Tripp inhabits Georgia’s psyche so deeply that the reader can practically feel the paintbrush in hand as she creates her abstract paintings and New Mexico landscapes. . . . Evocative from the first page to the last, Tripp’s Georgia is a romantic yet realistic exploration of the sacrifices one of the foremost artists of the twentieth century made for love.”—USA Today

“Sexually charged . . . insightful . . . Dawn Tripp humanizes an artist who is seen in biographies as more icon than woman. Her sensuous novel is as finely rendered as an O’Keeffe painting.”—The Denver Post

“A vivid work forged from the actual events of O’Keeffe’s life . . . [Tripp] imbues the novel with a protagonist who forces the reader to consider the breadth of O’Keeffe’s talent, business savvy, courage and wanderlust. . . . [She] is vividly alive as she grapples with success, fame, integrity, love and family.”—Salon

• ISBN10: 0812981863
• ISBN13: 9780812981865
• Publish Date: 17 January 2017 (first published 9 February 2016)
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: US
• Publisher: Random House USA Inc
• Imprint: Random House Trade Paperbacks
• Format: Paperback (US Trade)
• Pages: 352
• Language: English
• URL: https://penguinrandomhouse.com/books/isbn/9780812981865

Reviews

[Quirky Cat]

I’m always a little hesitant about fictional retellings of real people, but I thought in this instance I would give it a chance. Dawn Tripp appears to have done her research – knowing all the necessary facts about Georgia O’Keeffe’s travels, works, and so on. Tripp did admit that all the letters mentioned in her novel were made up, which is important to know going into it. If you’re hoping for historical accuracy, this isn’t it. It’s beautifully written though, and the cover is absolutely stunning.
I went into this book all excited and hopeful, despite my concerns. Unfortunately I felt that ultimately this was not the novel for me, as I would have liked to read more about Georgia O’Keeffe and her artwork and time spent traveling. In particular I would have loved to read more about her time in New Mexico painting landscapes. I would have also loved more focus on the method and thoughts behind the artwork itself.
Georgia: A Novel seemed to focus more on O’Keeffe’s relationship with Alfred Stieglitz as opposed to her relationship to her artwork. I’ll admit I was a little put off by this fact, and wish the focus had been different. I think what really kept me from enjoying the book was the amount of attention Stieglitz received – it made him appear that every action, every move, every painting, was done with Stieglitz in mind. Some of that may be true, but I was always of the impression that Georgia O’Keeffe was a strong and independent woman, so I found everything to be jarring in comparison. I realize that these two states of being are not mutually exclusive; my point is that I don’t believe O’Keefe would have allowed herself to think of a man before her painting, let alone allowed him to interfere in it.
A few things in particular bothered me about these implications. One is that in the book, O’Keeffe is upset about the sexualized reviews she’s received. She perceives them as a connection to the photographs Stieglitz took of her. It is just my interpretation, but I had always assumed this critique came from her art style, not her background or past (but then again, I wasn’t there, so maybe this wasn’t the case). I’ve heard her artwork called sexual before (particularly when commenting on her flower abstracts), but never because of any photographs of her.
The other part is that the novel sped up and glossed over many events after Stieglitz’s death, yes I understand that their romance was the focus of this book, but there was so much more to O’Keeffe than that, and she didn’t simply stop living or painting after he passed away.
I would like to give credit to the research done for this novel (there are so many little factual details sprinkled throughout, adding to the realism), and the absolutely wonderful writing style used. I think that had this not been based on a real person (one that I’ve idolized since I was a child) I would have greatly enjoyed it.


For more reviews, check out Quirky Cat's Fat Stacks