We are starting it off right – with art! Did you know that Georgia O’Keeffe found much inspiration in New Mexico. In fact, her ranch is found in Abiquiu. That is in the northern part of the state, somewhat close to Taos and Santa Fe. “Somewhat” is a relative term here, folks, as there are many wide-open space in New Mexico.
Abiquiu is a small town that has played a big role in history and movies. There is a pretty good list of movies that have shot in and around Abiquiu. It was also the scene for some TV series shots. I know that is of interest to many people but honestly, I haven’t seen most of those. If I take look, I can find over 50 titles for films that have shot, at least partly, in the area.
Abiquiu was one of the original stops on the Spanish Trail in the 1800s which linked Santa Fe with Los Angeles. These stops were important for trade and safety.
The area includes many wonderful hiking trails and a lovely monastery (Monastery of Christ in the Desert). The Abiquiu Reservoir is a large lake that has some recreational activities available such as fishing, hiking, and boating.
My favorite part of Abiquiu is, by far, the association it has with Georgia O’Keeffe. As an artist, she fell in love with the light and the area. Beginning in about 1929, O’Keeffe spent a good part of each year in New Mexico. She eventually bought Ghost Ranch, close to Abiquiu. It provided her much to paint, from her beloved Pedernal to dry bones to bright desert flowers. The light and sky is a great attraction for many artists and O’Keeffe seemed to take much inspiration from it. Her work is beautiful and striking. If you want a neat book on Georgia O’Keeffe, check out the biography for children that I shared on a post a while back (it is towards the end of the post).
Ghost Ranch, The Georgia O’Keeffe Museum, and a visitor’s center are all places to visit to learn more about O’Keeffe.
Blessings,
Lori, At Home.
Letter A Link Up – Inlinkz Link Party
Each week we will be linking up with the hosts of Blogging Through the Alphabet. Please visit some of these other blogs to get things like book lists, vegan recipes, and wonderful places to visit, just to name the topics I can think of off the top of my head.
- Amanda @ Hopkins Homeschool
- Christine @ Life’s Special Necessities
- Kimberly @ Vintage Blue Suitcase
- Dawn @ Schoolin’ Swag
- Wendy @ Life On Chickadee Lane
- Yvonne @ The Life We Build
- Jennifer @ A Peace Of Mind
- Kristen @ A Mom’s Quest To Teach
- Kirsten @ DoodleMom Homeschool
You can also join us and link up your own Blogging Through The Alphabet Post!! Just be sure to follow these simple rules–
* Each post must be family friendly. If it is not, we have the right to remove it.
* When linking up to this post, you give us permission to share your post and/or a photo from your post in future posts and social media shares.
* Place the Blog Button from the site onto the post you are linking up.
* Use the hashtag #abcblogging when promoting your post. This will help us find you and help us promote you as well.
* If you have time, check out a few of the other posts and share the love.
* The most important rule is to make sure you are having fun! This is not something we want you to be stressed out over. We want to see all the fun ideas that everyone comes up with for the letters!
Tagged: ABC blogging, New Mexico, travel/trips
At Home 
We studied O’Keeffe last year in our artist studies. It would be neat to see the museum.
The museum dedicated to O’Keeffe is amazing. Her clouds and sky picture, I can’t recall its name, is HUGE. And all of the flowers are stunning in detail.
Abiquiu sounds like an incredibly interesting place.
Glad I was able to share my interest. I would enjoy getting to visit and to stay a Ghost Ranch sometime.
great start to your series. 🙂 Georgia O’keefe did some nice art.
Yes, she did.
This is so wonderful! Thank you for sharing in our Link Party and I cannot wait to see what you write for next week!
I always enjoyed the ABC series, both writing and reading.
I have to ask, how do you pronounce “Abiquiu”??
Good question! A/bih/cue. First letter is a short a sound. Some of the words that are coming up I may need to find links for pronunciation. Thanks for asking.
Thank you! I had it totally wrong!
You’re welcome!