Inner Courtyard at Georgia O’Keefe’s

Now we have entered (by way of that entryway I talked about in the flower and garden post) what I call the Inner Courtyard.  It’s interesting in that this courtyard has 4 different entrances and exits.  The first one is the way I just explained.  The second is sort of kitty corner from this entry/exit, and, I believe it is another entryway that leads to guest bedrooms and thru to the front courtyard.

Inside of Supply Door

The third entry/exit is thru the supply door that I mentioned in one of the previous posts.  The photo of the outside wasn’t all that inspiring, but the view from this side, with the light shining thru, is quite striking.  It’s one of my favorite images that I took on this day.  And, to those of you who are real fans, there’s a tidbit of fun info about this door……

Georgia Sat Here

This was actually the setting of a photograph of Georgia O’Keeffe that was published in Life Magazine.  In the photograph, the door is wide open and she’s looking out into the front gate and entrance to the property.  In my image, the doors are closed, but the large elk skull still hangs on the wall, and the bench is still there.  One other interesting item – do you see the lightbulb hanging from the ceiling?  Georgia did not put any covering or lampshade, etc., on any lightbulb.  All her lightbulbs, throughout the house, are naked. She was really very Spartan in her approach to decorating (and I use the term lightly).  She only liked white walls with nothing hanging on them.  She felt that to have anything hanging on the walls (even her own art) would be too much of a distraction for her creative processes.  Most of the bed coverings, curtains, etc., were also white for the same reason.  Very minimalistic.

Elk Skull

Here’s a full up photo of that elk head I just mentioned.  It’s absolutely huge!  And, no, Georgia did not find this skull on one of her daily walks!  This skull was given to her by a Native American leader.

Georgia’s Door

This unassuming door, in the Inner Courtyard, was why Georgia said she wanted to buy this house.  She found it very inspiring, and used it as the foundation for many of her abstract pieces that included doors and – what appear to be – windows.  Curious as to what’s behind the door?  We didn’t get to open it and see, but the guide told us this was her storage and crating area, where she would prepare or direct the preparation of her pieces to be shipped to various galleries and museums.

Dining Room Entry

The fourth entry/exit from the Inner Courtyard is actually this door and the one to the right of it, almost out of view.  This door leads to the dining room where Georgia would host larger numbers of guests from time to time. She did entertain friends, but wasn’t known for hosting large parties.  The greenery on the top of the covered entryway are branches of trees that grow in the yard.  They are put up there for the summer to give shade into the dining room. They are removed come fall, so that when the snow falls in the winter, it can just fall right thru the skeletal structure of the cover.  The concern is that if it remained covered overwinter, the weight of the snow would break the entryway cover.  Oh, and the door on the right leads into the very large pantry and then into the kitchen.  From the kitchen, one enters the far end of the front courtyard.

Enjoy!