Georgia Totto O'Keeffe was born in the year on November 15, 1887. She was one of seven children and spent most of her childhood on a farm, with the typical farm animals and rolling hills. O'Keeffe's aunt, not her mother, was mostly responsible for raising her. O'Keeffe did not care much for her aunt, she once referred to her as, "the headache of my life." She did, however, have some admiration for her aunt's strict and self disciplined character. O'Keeffe was given her own room and less responsibility. The younger sisters had to do more chores and share close living conditions. A younger sister stated that O'Keeffe always wanted things her way, and if she didn't get them her way, "she'd raise the devil." It was found through family and friends that O'Keeffe was like this throughout much of her life. O'Keeffe began her training early with private art lessons at home. The foundation of her future as an artist was made. When O'Keeffe was in the eighth grade she asked a daughter of a farm employee what she was going to do when she grew up. The girl said she didn't know. O'Keeffe replied very definitely, "...I am going to be an artist!"--"I don't really know where I got my artist idea...I only know that by that time it was definitely settled in my mind." She entered the Sacred Heart Academy, an art school in Madison, Wisconsin, in 1901. At school she discovered her blooming talent for artwork. Her art seemed to be the only stable element in O'Keeffe's younger life. In 1902 her parents moved to Virginia and were joined by the children in 1903. By the age of 16, O'Keeffe had 5 years of private art lessons at various schools in Wisconsin and Virginia. One particular teacher, Elizabeth Willis, encouraged her to work at her own pace and granted her opportunities that the other students felt were unfair. At times she would work intensely, and at other times she would not work for days. When it was brought to the attention of the p...
