Most local artists know Georgia O’Keeffe’s work but may not be as familiar with her contemporary, Arthur Dove.   Arthur Dove (1880-1946) is often called the first American abstract artist or modernist.    He experimented with abstraction and non-representational images, drawing inspiration from nature, landscapes, and natural forms.    He also translated music into abstract images.   Dove also found inspiration from the 19thC. transcendentalists—Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau.  His work focused on the spiritual essence of nature—“the vital energies of nature” –over just its visual image. He described his process as “extraction,” reducing subjects to their essential forms, colors, and textures to reveal the underlying truth, similar to the Transcendentalist focus on discovering essential truth. 

Both Dove and O’Keeffe found inspiration in nature and in each other’s work, but Dove was, perhaps, more bold, experimenting with mixed media collage and sound, whereas O’Keefe’s renown work is considered more sensual, with simplified organic forms.   

Both O’Keeffe and Dove were represented by Alfred Steigliz, O’Keeffe’s husband, at 291 Gallery in New York, known for promoting avant garde artists.     

Often, one can trace an artist’s lineage to those who came before him or her.   Dove was influenced by the European modernists, including Cezanne, the Fauvists (e.g., Matisse) and Cubists (e.g., Picasso and Braque).  His work, in turn, influenced the Abstract Expressionists, including Mark Rothko; and Jackson Pollock and his wife, Lee Krasner.    Dove also influenced the magical work of Charles Burchfield (1893–1967), as both shared a deep, spiritual, and often abstract approach to nature.  We’ll spotlight Burchfield in a future Art History Spotlight.

Sources:

Arthur Dove – Wikipedia

Arthur Dove – 39 artworks – painting

Arthur Dove Paintings, Bio, Ideas | TheArtStory