I was thinking about frenzied mad love.

Peter Bruun

In renowned photographer Alfred Stieglitz, young Georgia O’Keeffe, a Midwestern art teacher, found an instant fan, and eventually a muse, a promoter and an impassioned lover as unrestrained by convention as she was. Through their 30-year romance they exchanged more than 5,000 letters sharing details of daily life, illustrating their growth as artistic leaders of the time, and giving tongue to their frank eroticism. Five years into their marriage and stung by her husband’s affair with a young assistant, Georgia accepted an invitation to visit Taos, New Mexico, and spend some time apart from Alfred. The time away, so transformative for her art-making, also clarified her desire for him. Thousands of miles away in the desert, she received his letters “like fine cold water when you are terribly thirsty,” meeting them with her own urgency.