Georgia O’Keeffe is purported to have said, “I’ve been absolutely terrified every moment of my life – and I’ve never let it keep me from doing a single thing I wanted to do.” In the spirit of these words, the third and fourth grade students challenged themselves to push outside of their comfort zones and try new things on their spring experiential trip to New Mexico. The trip offered a sharp contrast between Abiquiu, New Mexico, a gem of rural landscape that inspired a large body of O’Keeffe’s work and Santa Fe, an urban epicenter of art in the southwest.

The goal of our time in Abiquiu was to immerse ourselves in the desert landscape of New Mexico. Georgia O’Keeffe fell in love with this region of the United States while visiting a friend in 1917. Students stayed at Ghost Ranch where they hiked to Chimney Rock and spent considerable time sketching and painting the dramatic scenery. While in Abiquiu, students also visited Georgia O’Keeffe’s home and studio. This special experience gave students a glimpse into the personal life of Georgia O’Keeffe and helped them make connections to some of her most famous paintings.

After traveling an hour south, students got a taste of city life in America’s second oldest capital city, Santa Fe! Students visited the Georgia O’Keeffe museum, practiced conversing in Spanish at a variety of restaurants, and experienced the immersive and interactive art installation at Meow Wolf.

This four-day trip to New Mexico marks the furthest and longest trip that students have taken during their Mountain School experiential education journey thus far. Students immersed themselves in their artist study of Georgia O’Keeffe and pushed themselves to be conscientious travelers. As Georgia O’Keeffe would have liked, everyone did something that was a little scary and built their confidence.

~Caitlin Orintas
3/4 Homeroom Teacher