Illumination: The Paintings of Georgia OKeeffe, Agnes Pelton, Agnes Martin, and Florence Miller Pierce

The first exhibition to bring together the work of these four important American women modernists. O'Keeffe (1887-1986) and Pelton (1881-1961) were born six years apart in the 1880s, while Martin (1912-2004) and Pierce (1918-2007) were born six years apart in the 1910s. All four drew on nature as their primary focus, inspired by arid and spare desert environments: O'Keeffe, Pierce and Martin, lived much of their lives in New Mexico, while Pelton resided in Cathedral City near Palm Springs, California.

Through their keen 'sense of place' they each developed vocabularies with varying degrees of abstraction, but the four artists share an interest in illumination and a desire to convey transcendence and spirituality in their paintings.

A 192-page catalogue co-published with Merrell Publishers accompanies this exhibition.

This exhibition is organized by Karen Moss, deputy director for exhibitions and programs, Orange County Museum of Art.

Illumination: The Paintings of Georgia O´Keeffe, Agnes Pelton, Agnes Martin, and Florence Miller Pierce
Kurator: Karen Moss