Ida O'Keeffe 1924

Alfred Stieglitz made this photograph of Ida O’Keeffe, Georgia's sister, sometime in the early twentieth century. What can we know of their relationship? Ida reclines, gazing upwards, her finger gently touching her lips in an act of nervous contemplation. As a painter I am wondering what the relationship was like between Stieglitz and Ida. Was he asking her to pose in a certain way? Did he allow her to find her own pose? Did she also have opinions about the composition, the angle of the shot, the shadows, and the lighting? I feel for the woman in the picture. Was she comfortable? Was she being paid? Was she a collaborator in the making of the work? Or did she feel put upon by her famous sister's partner? I can feel the tension of the situation. And there’s always such a complex push and pull between artists! We inspire each other, rip each other off, and challenge each other to see the world differently.