Georgia O'Keeffe's Hawai'i

About 18 months ago, our wonderful Kona Stories held a "Meet the Authors" night. First up was a wisp of a woman, so soft-spoken and frail I thought whatever her book (title "Georgia O'Keeffe's Hawaii") had to offer would be as interesting as cold bread pudding. Wrong! Microphone on, and a spirited woman, an adventurer, a teller of tales came forth. The tales she told that night were from three months in 1939 when she was 12, living on the biggest pineapple plantation on Maui, and tasked by her dad with being the guide & hostess for Georgia O'Keeffe.The biggest pineapple company had persuaded the commercially reluctant artist to come to Hawaii, all expenses paid, and paint anything she liked, as long as there were two pineapple-related paintings they could use for their handsome advertisements. She produced twenty splendid paintings none of which involved a pineapple. Later she was sent a plant and produced the 21st Hawaiian painting, her stunning Pineapple in Bud.ABOUT THE BOOK: This is a wonderful book, comprised of five elements:--Patricia Jennings' stories (as told to Maria Ausherman) are vignettes of when Georgia lived with her dad and her. Each day, she and Georgia got into the family car, while Patricia guided the artist to her favorite places, Georgia painted (alone as she sternly demanded) and when Georgia wasn't painting, they explored, like heading into one of Maui's more precipitous gulches. Patricia's keenly observed stories include Georgia's interactions with her father and other islanders. At 51 Georgia was beautiful and she knew it.--Georgia's own letters about Hawaii to her husband and mentor, photographer Alfred Stieglitz, 23 years older than she. These have not been published previously. Speaking through these letters in her own voice and, in an appendix, Patricia's comments, Georgia is seen as an acute observer of others but less so of herself. More vulnerable, more human, less intrepid.--A fine 30 page essay by the curator of the 1990 Honolulu Academy of Art's special exhibit of O'Keeffe's Hawaii paintings. Jennifer Saville's analysis gives depth to these pictures, placing them in the context of Hawaii at that time and of O'Keeffe's life as an artist.-- 33 photographs of O'Keeffe, Patricia as a 12 year old, her father Willis, many of the places Georgia painted, and others who figure in these stories. Even the intrusive dog Lucky, more exuberant than the artist preferred. Not only, like Tigger, were dogs bouncy as to paint pots palettes and canvases, but they barked disrupting concentration.--saving the best for last, there are 17 full-page, full-color beautifully reproduced paintings from Hawaii, including the pineapple she eventually painted for the hopeful sponsor of her trip, the Dole Pineapple CompanyANY READER ALERTS? This is not a full-on biography of Georgia O'Keeffe nor does it need to be. There are some excellent biographies available. Neither is this book an autobiography although her letters and her paintings can be interpreted as saying a lot about this splendid artist & woman: perhaps a fragment of an autobiography. And it is not a comprehensive art book of her styles and paintings.Not these, but something unique and quite wonderful. What readers can expect is sharing a moment in time with a very young woman worth knowing and an older woman known around the world, enhanced by seeing some iconic paintings in the context of where they were painted and when. This is a snapshot, an unguarded moment, one O'Keeffe probably never imagined would be recalled half a century later. It reads as fresh as it was experienced in 1939 Maui, and as magical.OVERALL: The paper-backed edition is a bargain for those who admire O'Keeffe's work & are fascinated by her history. Much of what she saw in 1939 can still be seen in Maui. A wonderful gift for yourself and what a great-hearted gift for friends about to come to our lovely islands with an adventurous heart, seeing eyes and a touch of enjoying her, him, and them stories. Several O'Keeffe's can be seen at the Honolulu Museum of Art, rather unobtrusively displayed. One turns a corner, sees them, and leaps for joy. The guards seem used to people saying almost incoherently, "But but but that's a real Georgia O'Keeffe." It is, it is. And readers of this book will know their stories.

This book is a perfect meeting of a place I love and an artist whose work I love.

The book includes a very personal description of Georgia O'Keeffe's visit to Hawaii hosted by Patricia Jenning's parents. The writing is clear and the artists paintings of Hawaii capture the beauty of Maui, still present today.

I liked this book because it gave insight into a part of Georgia O'Keefe's life that I didn't know about. She's one of my favorite artists and it's always interesting to know what influenced her artistic process. The beauty of Hawaii was obviously integrated into the artistic flow of her iconic works. It was lovely to see this new (to me) work. I only wish there'd been more.

This book is very interesting if you are a fan of Georgia O"Keeffe. When Georgia O'Keeffe visited Hawai'i to do promotional art for the Dole company, she stayed with a family and this book is written by the daughter of the family she stayed with. It includes copies of the pictures she painted while there and is a narrative of the details of her visit. It describes a small portion of her life that few know about.

Beautiful book, I love to look at it when it is a dark or rainy day where I live, to remember the beauty of Hawaii from my last trip. Text is also interesting history about O'Keeffe. O'Keeffe is my favorite artist but previously I was more familiar with her other works on landscapes, flowers and Autumn leaves...but this one is also a treat, showing a side of O'Keeffe I didn't know about previously.

This is an exquisite book. It gives us a clear glimpse into the life of Georgia O'Keefe from the viewpoint of her 12 year old Hana, Maui friend and guide. I love the paintings and photos interspersed in the pages. This book is a joy to read. I have given it to one friend and plan to give it to some more. The book is captivating, informative, and beautiful. Bravo!

I thought I had seen or collected every book on Georgia O'Keefe. Having been to Hawaii and then finding this book, it was as if I was back in Hawaii. The colors are so vibrant and the subject matter so her. It's a wonderful book to have- and living in the Winter Wonderland, it will be my escape during the long winters of snow and grey.

Arrived in excellant condition - I bought this for the artwork it contained and to find out more about Georgia O'Keeffe.