Someone Always Nearby: A Novel of Maria Chabot and Georgia O’Keeffe

Summary

In 1940, art-world icon Georgia O'Keeffe bought a house in a mountain-rimmed New Mexico desert, planning to live there for six months every year. To manage her remote household while she paints, O'Keeffe invited Maria Chabot—a young and naïve would-be writer—to join her. Their tempestuous relationship endured throughout the chaotic years of WW2, the death of Georgia's domineering, philandering husband (famed photographer Alfred Stieglitz), and Maria's design and building of a remarkable adobe house and studio for the artist in the native village of Abiquiu—a generous gift from an exceptional friend. An evocative story that explores the dimensions of friendship and the debts we incur to those who make our lives easier, Someone Always Nearby is based on research into a massive collection of over 700 letters, documents, media reports, and historical accounts. Listeners will be fascinated by this intimate, revealing portrait of the artist's daily life during her first decade at her New Mexico ranch—a mysterious, enigmatic O'Keeffe that only one woman ever fully knew. A bonus guide is available as a free, printable pdf at SusanAlbert.com/Someone-Always-Nearby. It includes the story behind the story: research, sources, hyperlinked resources, curated extras, author commentary, questions, and discussion topics.