Dear Friends:
 
For one whole evening last August, I had the luck to be the voice of the great photographer, Alfred Stieglitz  -- during a letter reading event that was part of the Georgia O’Keeffe Museum’s 10-year Anniversary festivities.
 
It was an unforgettable experience, especially since my friends, actresses Joan Allen and Marsha Mason were on the same stage as the personas of the glorious Georgia O'Keeffe (Joan) and O’Keeffe’s dear friend, Anita Pollitzer (Marsha)  -
 
What a rare chance, to bring their words, thoughts, and feelings to life!
 
I came away with a new appreciation of the depth and complexity of the relationship of one of America’s best-known and most famous ‘artist couples,’ and a keen awareness not only of their importance to the history of American art, but of the privilege and pleasure of helping keep aspects of that history alive. . . .
Their important influence is alive in the present and will continue into the future -- thanks to the passionate determination of the Georgia O'Keeffe Museum, which holds in trust more than half of O’Keeffe’s work and numerous examples of Stieglitz’s photographs.
 
Maintaining, conserving, repairing, traveling, and exhibiting these works as well as those by other American artists now in the Museum collections -- nearly 3,000 in all – is both a challenge and an enormous satisfaction. Year after year, thanks to faithful friends like you, the Georgia O'Keeffe Museum does just that.
 
The Museum also has another commitment: being a good neighbor at home.  This means reaching out to the youngest and least privileged through programs like its Art and Leadership Program for Girls and Boys, and the pre-school literacy projects it offers to public schools in the area – programs carried out with the same dedication that the Museum brings to repairing damaged artwork or planning an exhibition.
 
All of this is done with a heartfelt commitment – not just to the art itself, but to the idea that art is not a luxury for the few but a necessity for all – teaching as well as inspiring – and most of all, a commitment to ensuring that the legacy left to us by these unique artists is safely passed to the future.
 
Please join me in supporting the ongoing and important work of the Georgia O'Keeffe Museum!
 
Thank you!
 


Sam Waterston