New Mexico

Reframing Georgia O’Keeffe’s legacy and protecting the land she loved

Published

4 weeks ago

March 14, 2026

Press Room

Reframing Georgia O’Keeffe’s legacy and protecting the land she loved

A view (looking east) of Ghost Ranch near Abiquiu, New Mexico, on March 11, 2026.

Minesh Bacrania for NPR

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Minesh Bacrania for NPR

ABIQUIU, NM – On a recent afternoon, fluffy clouds drift past the sun, throwing light, then shadow, across distant cliffs layered in yellow, ochre and sienna.

This starkly beautiful, high desert of northern New Mexico is where the artist Georgia O’Keeffe lived and painted the abstract, color-drenched paintings of flowers, bones and landforms that brought her international acclaim as “the mother of American modernism.”

In the 40 years since her death, the area came to be called O’Keeffe County.

Today, however, that identity is shifting – culturally and legally.

There is a move afoot, prompted by Pueblo Indians and Hispanos who’ve been on the land for centuries, to stop calling it O’Keeffe Country. Moreover, a historic new conservation plan will protect that landscape — with its colorful cliffs and buttes — forevermore.

David Evans is the CEO of Ghost Ranch, best known as the home — and inspiration — of O’Keeffe. He stands on a bluff and scans the storied valley.

Ghost Ranch CEO David Evans photographed at Ghost Ranch near Abiquiu, New Mexico, on March 11, 2026.

Minesh Bacrania for NPR

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“Georgia O’Keeffe loved (this area) because of the same reasons everyone who visits loves it,” he says, “the richness of the colors of the cliffs against the sky, the way the light plays on it, the way the clouds move in. It’s incredible.”

Ghost Ranch is now a spiritual and educational retreat center just over an hour’s drive northwest of Santa Fe. The longtime owner of Ghost Ranch, Arthur Pack – a nationally prominent conservationist – donated it in 1955 to the Presbyterian Church, whose nonprofit foundation owns it today.

O’Keeffe fell in love with Ghost Ranch country when she first visited from New York in the 1930s. In an early letter to her famous photographer husband, Alfred Stieglitz, she described the landscape as “Perfectly mad-looking country, hills and cliffs and washes too crazy to imagine, all thrown up in the air by God and let tumble where they would.”

In 1940, when Ghost Ranch was still a dude ranch, she purchased an adobe house there, Casa de los Burros. She spent most of the rest of her life painting the raw beauty of her surroundings.

“There’s something in the air, it’s just different, the sky is different, the stars are different, the wind is just different,” O’Keeffe said in a mid-1970s public television documentary.

At 88, the legendary artist, dressed in a black smock, was filmed walking through the eroded sculptural features of the badlands, her face furrowed by age, her eyes still blazing. She died in Santa Fe at the age of 98.

“As soon as I saw it,” she said, “that was my country.”

Rewriting the narrative

Artist Jason Garcia (Okuu Pin), of Santa Clara Pueblo (left), and Curator Bess Murphy, of the Georgia O’Keeffe Museum in Santa Fe, photographed in the studio of Georgia O’Keeffe’s home at Ghost Ranch in New Mexico on March 11, 2026.

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Minesh Bacrania for NPR

My country.

That played well among her legions of admirers, but not so much in northern New Mexico among the Tewa, the indigenous people that include the Pueblo Indians.

Her favorite subject was Cerro Pedernal, the flat-topped mountain that stands like a sentinel over this basin. She painted it 29 times, and had her ashes scattered on the summit. In one infamous quote, O’Keeffe said, “It’s my private mountain. It belongs to me. God told me if I painted it enough, I could have it.”

Tewa artist Jason Garcia, of the Santa Clara Pueblo, chuckles at the statement. He has also painted Pedernal, which Tewa consider a sacred landmark whose native name is Tsi-Pin, flaking stone mountain.

“It’s pretty funny to hear that, to think that one person can say, ‘If I paint this enough I can have it. God told me,’” Garcia says. “But it’s just not just hers. You have Tewa people that have lived here on the landscape, as well, since time immemorial.”

Garcia is co-curator of a groundbreaking exhibition called Tewa Nangeh at the Georgia O’Keeffe Museum in Santa Fe. Twelve Tewa artists respond, with their art, to O’Keeffe’s aesthetic claim to their ancestral land.

“At the O’Keeffe Museum, for so long the story of northern New Mexico has been told only through Georgia O’Keeffe’s eyes,” says Bess Murphy, co-curator of the exhibition and art curator at the museum. “And really we were hoping to create a space in the museum where we can add complexity to that narrative.”

The museum’s official poster for the exhibition highlights that changing narrative. A sign says, “Welcome to O’Keeffe Country” and “Tewa” has been scrawled across her name. Murphy says the Tewa-and-O’Keeffe show has doubled the number of local and native visitors who visit the museum.

Jonathan Hayden, executive director of the New Mexico Land Conservancy, which works closely with Ghost Ranch, gives credit to the museum “for really forcing people to reckon with the erasure of indigenous perspectives from ‘O’Keeffe Country.’”

Protecting the land

The artist’s legacy, nevertheless, remains a huge draw for Ghost Ranch and the region. A yearly music festival is held at the ranch, called Blossoms and Bones, after her still-lifes. The ranch’s classic logo is an O’Keeffe drawing of a cow skull. And just down the road, visitors can sign up for a tour of O’Keeffe’s second home and studio in the village of Abiquiú.

Like the museum, Ghost Ranch has also begun to re-frame its narrative.

“O’Keeffe Country is not a frame that we use,” says Evans. “This country has a very rich history and she’s an important part of it. But it’s not solely her story by any means.”

Ghost Ranch CEO David Evans photographed at Ghost Ranch near Abiquiu, New Mexico, on March 11, 2026.

Minesh Bacrania for NPR

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In December, the ranch announced a historic conservation agreement that will protect this pristine emptiness in perpetuity.

In the first phase—that covers 6,000 of the ranch’s 21,000 total acres—the New Mexico Land Conservancy will pay the church foundation nearly $1 million to preserve the vista and never develop the land. Funding comes from the state’s Land of Enchantment Legacy Fund. The arrangement bans things like ranchettes, cell-phone towers and Dollar Stores, while leaving intact the main Ghost Ranch facilities—visitor’s center, trails, lodging, stables, dinosaur museum and O’Keeffe’s home.

“This is truly a once-in-a-generation opportunity to protect one of the West’s most iconic landscapes,” says Hayden. “Acreage-wise it’s not the largest. But in terms of its meaning to people going back to indigenous cultures, to (Spanish) land grant heirs, and everyone inspired by the work of Georgia O’Keeffe, it’s truly a rare opportunity.”

Evans says protecting the ranch’s 30 square miles “is one of the most important parts of Ghost Ranch’s mission.” But he adds, it’s expensive to maintain the vast property and ensure a great guest experience.

“We have over 100 buildings, 21,000 acres,” he says. “So it’s a tough business model. The revenue will really help to support our operating costs and to keep this open for future generations.”

Finding a balance or The price of popularity

Norman Vigil with his cattle at his ranch in Canjilon, New Mexico (just north of Ghost Ranch) on March 11, 2026. Vigil leases grazing rights from Ghost Ranch, and runs his cattle on Ghost Ranch for part of the year.

Minesh Bacrania for NPR

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It’s also cattle country.

Norman Vigil runs 25 black Angus on Ghost Ranch pastureland. On a recent afternoon, he was out checking on his mama cows. “Hey, vacas!” he called in Spanish, shaking a bucket of feed pellets.

The conservation plan continues the longstanding arrangement that lets local cattlemen use ranch pastures for winter grazing. “It allows us to maintain our culture, our historical use,” Vigil says.

Cattle on Ghost Ranch, near Abiquiu, New Mexico, on March 11, 2026. A number of local ranchers lease grazing rights from Ghost Ranch.

Minesh Bacrania for NPR

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He’s a bit jaded when it comes to the label “O’Keeffe Country.”

While it’s been good for realtors, Airbnbs, cafes, and gift shops, Vigil says for many folks in the region, like him, all it’s done is drive up home prices.

“There’s a lot of people making a good living because of Georgia O’Keeffe, and so can you argue on the economic side for those folks,” he says. “But for us, really the exposure hasn’t been all that great.”

For years, the nonprofit Ghost Ranch has charged film crews to use the stunning panorama as a backdrop. Production companies out here have filmed everything from Chevy truck commercials to the movie, “Oppenheimer.”

David Manazares photographed on the set of the movie Oppenheimer, located at Ghost Ranch near Abiquiu NM, on March 11, 2026.

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Tewa artist Garcia knows why they want to be out here.

“It’s funny when you think about the O’Keeffe quote …’There’s something different about New Mexico.’ She’s right. She’s not lying,” he says. “The mountains, the clouds, dusk, dawn, midnight. I mean, it’s a beautiful place. I wouldn’t trade it for anywhere else.”

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New Mexico

NM Department of Wildlife warns of aggressive wildlife behavior

Published

11 hours ago

April 8, 2026

Press Room

The New Mexico Department of Wildlife is now urging outdoor recreationists to use caution after two separate incidents involving unusually aggressive wildlife took place in Catron County.

NM Department of Wildlife warns of aggressive wildlife behavior

The New Mexico Department of Wildlife is now urging outdoor recreationists to use caution after two separate incidents involving unusually aggressive wildlife took place in Catron County.

CHARGES, INCLUDING MURDER. HIS TRIAL DATE IS NOT YET SET. THE DEPARTMENT OF WILDLIFE IS URGING EVERYONE TO STAY ALERT AFTER TWO CASES OF AGGRESSIVE WILDLIFE IN THE GILA WILDERNESS IN CATRON COUNTY. A BOBCAT AND FOX APPROACHED AND ENGAGED WITH PEOPLE IN SEPARATE ENCOUNTERS. THEY WEREN’T BITTEN, BUT THAT BEHAVIOR RAISES SUSPICION OF RABIES. A BOBCAT JUST TESTED POSITIVE FOR THAT IN SIERRA COUNTY. STATE WILDLIFE AND HEALTH OFFICIALS SAY PEOPLE SHOULD AVOID WILD ANIMALS, KEEP PETS LEASHED AND GET THEIR RABIES SHOT

NM Department of Wildlife warns of aggressive wildlife behavior

The New Mexico Department of Wildlife is now urging outdoor recreationists to use caution after two separate incidents involving unusually aggressive wildlife took place in Catron County.

Updated: 6:42 PM MDT Apr 8, 2026

Editorial Standards ⓘ

The New Mexico Department of Wildlife is now urging outdoor recreationists to use caution after two separate incidents involving unusually aggressive wildlife took place in Catron County. According to the department, in different incidents, a bobcat and a fox approached and engaged with hikers and campers within the Gila Wilderness. Though nobody was bitten, these reports raise suspicion of rabies infections and come after a bobcat tested positive for rabies in Sierra County in March.They say rabies has been diagnosed in both bobcats and foxes in New Mexico. If you see a rabid animal, you should report it to your local animal control officer or your local New Mexico Department of Wildlife Conservation officer.The department says to keep you and your family safe from rabies:Always keep pets on a leash. Pets should be up to date on rabies vaccinations and wearing current license tags on their collar. If your cat or dog has been bitten or scratched, especially by a wild animal, call your pet’s veterinarian even if the wound is superficial.Horses and other livestock should also be considered for rabies vaccination to protect them from rabid animals that may attack them.Stay away from wild or unfamiliar animals. Do not attempt to feed, approach or touch wild animals (alive or dead). Teach this important message to your children and always keep a close eye on your children.If you or someone you know is bitten by an animal or comes into contact with an animal’s saliva, wash the exposed site immediately with soap and water. Be sure to report the bite to local animal control and seek medical care as soon as possible.If you or your pets are bitten or otherwise exposed to the saliva of wild animals, seek medical care immediately and contact the NMDOH Helpline at 833-SWNURSE (796-8773).

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. —

The New Mexico Department of Wildlife is now urging outdoor recreationists to use caution after two separate incidents involving unusually aggressive wildlife took place in Catron County.

According to the department, in different incidents, a bobcat and a fox approached and engaged with hikers and campers within the Gila Wilderness. Though nobody was bitten, these reports raise suspicion of rabies infections and come after a bobcat tested positive for rabies in Sierra County in March.

They say rabies has been diagnosed in both bobcats and foxes in New Mexico. If you see a rabid animal, you should report it to your local animal control officer or your local New Mexico Department of Wildlife Conservation officer.

The department says to keep you and your family safe from rabies:

Always keep pets on a leash. Pets should be up to date on rabies vaccinations and wearing current license tags on their collar. If your cat or dog has been bitten or scratched, especially by a wild animal, call your pet’s veterinarian even if the wound is superficial.
Horses and other livestock should also be considered for rabies vaccination to protect them from rabid animals that may attack them.
Stay away from wild or unfamiliar animals. Do not attempt to feed, approach or touch wild animals (alive or dead). Teach this important message to your children and always keep a close eye on your children.
If you or someone you know is bitten by an animal or comes into contact with an animal’s saliva, wash the exposed site immediately with soap and water. Be sure to report the bite to local animal control and seek medical care as soon as possible.
If you or your pets are bitten or otherwise exposed to the saliva of wild animals, seek medical care immediately and contact the NMDOH Helpline at 833-SWNURSE (796-8773).

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New Mexico

Domino’s top franchisee got his start in southeast New Mexico, delivered pizza in Alamogordo – Alamogordo Daily News

Published

23 hours ago

April 8, 2026

Press Room

Domino’s top franchisee got his start in southeast New Mexico, delivered pizza in Alamogordo – Alamogordo Daily News

Brian Bailey (far left) poses with key individuals who have helped him become Domino’s largest franchisee in the U.S. From left to right: Michelle Bailey, Brian’s wife and business partner; Tom Monaghan, Domino’s founder; Anthony Fish, Team Bailey executive vice president; Cyndi Tweet, Team Bailey vice president of training; and Rob Hoff, Team Bailey vice president of Texas operations.

Staff reports Brian Bailey owns more Domino’s franchise stores than anyone else. And he got his start delivering the pies in southeast New Mexico. He…

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New Mexico

New Mexico reaction to Trump’s deadline on Iran war

Published

1 day ago

April 7, 2026

Press Room

New Mexico reaction to Trump’s deadline on Iran war

Sen. Ben Ray Luján says Trump is waging an illegal war

THIS IS KOAT ACTION SEVEN NEWS. WE BEGIN WITH BREAKING NEWS AND THAT BREAKING NEWS IN THE WAR IN IRAQ. IF YOU’RE JUST TUNING IN, PRESIDENT TRUMP SAYING ON TRUTH SOCIAL, HE WILL AGREE TO A TWO WEEK CEASEFIRE ON THE CONDITION THAT IRAN AGREES TO REOPEN THE STRAIT OF HORMUZ. HIS NEW OFFER, COMING HOURS BEFORE HIS DEADLINE FOR IRAN TO OPEN THE STRAIT, THREATENING IF THEY DIDN’T. QUOTE, A WHOLE CIVILIZATION WILL DIE TONIGHT, NEVER TO BE BROUGHT BACK AGAIN. NOW, HE SAYS HE’S HAD CONVERSATIONS WITH THE FIELD MARSHAL AND PRIME MINISTER OF PAKISTAN AGREEING TO HOLD OFF FORCE BEING SENT TONIGHT TO IRAN. HE POSTED THIS. I’LL HOLD OFF THE DESTRUCTIVE FORCE BEING SENT TONIGHT TO IRAN AND SUBJECT TO THE ISLAMIC REPUBLIC OF IRAN, AGREEING TO THE COMPLETE, IMMEDIATE AND SAFE OPENING OF THE STRAIT OF HORMUZ. I AGREE TO SUSPEND THE BOMBING AND ATTACK IRAN FOR A PERIOD OF TWO WEEKS. HE CALLED IT A DOUBLE CEASE FIRE AFTER GETTING A PROPOSAL FROM IRAN AND WORKABLE BASIS ON WHICH TO NEGOTIATE. PROTESTERS AND LAWMAKERS REACTING TO THE PRESIDENT’S EARLIER SOCIAL MEDIA POSTS ABOUT ENDING A CIVILIZATION. IF THE STRAIT OF HORMUZ WAS NOT REOPENED. PRIOR TO THAT TEMPORARY CEASE FIRE DEAL HAS BEEN SUSPENDED. NOW, GETTING REACTION FROM SENATOR LUJAN. YEAH. SENATOR LUJAN, TODAY REACTING TO THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY OF NEW MEXICO CALLING FOR PRESIDENT TRUMP’S IMPEACHMENT. BUT FIRST, PROTESTERS GATHERED IN ALBUQUERQUE THIS MORNING. THE WAR IN IRAQ, IN ALBUQUERQUE, A FAMILIAR SPOT IN FRONT OF KIRTLAND AIR FORCE BASE TUESDAY, WHERE PROTESTERS HAVE BEEN GATHERING. BUT TODAY’S TONE WAS A BIT DIFFERENT. WHAT WOULD MAKE ME HAPPY IS A UNIVERSAL PURGE OF THE WHITE HOUSE AND THE PENTAGON. THERE’S NO REASON TO HAVE THESE WAR CRIMINALS IN OUR SERVICE, OR EVEN IN OUR GENE POOL ANYMORE. THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY OF NEW MEXICO CALLING FOR PRESIDENT TRUMP’S IMPEACHMENT. IN AN EMAIL SENT TO KOAT, U.S. SENATOR BEN RAY LUJAN IN ALBUQUERQUE AND RESPONDING, DO YOU THINK HE SHOULD BE REMOVED FROM OFFICE? PRESIDENT TRUMP, WE’LL SEE WHAT HAPPENS IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, WHICH IS WHERE THERE WOULD BE ANY IMPEACHMENT CONSIDERATION OR HEARINGS. SENATOR LUJAN, REACTING TO THIS SOCIAL MEDIA POST BY TRUMP WHERE HE CALLS FOR ATTACKS ON THE IRANIAN INFRASTRUCTURE, BRIDGES AND POWER PLANTS. IF A DEAL WASN’T REACHED, THERE HAS STILL NOT BEEN A VOTE THAT REPUBLICANS HAVE BROUGHT TO THE SENATE FLOOR, GIVING THE PRESIDENT THE TOOLS THAT ANY PRESIDENT WOULD NEED TO GO TO WAR. AN AUMF THIS PRESIDENT IS GOING AT IT AGAIN, RECKLESSLY. LUJAN FALLING SHORT OF CALLING TRUMP A WAR CRIMINAL. I BELIEVE THE PRESIDENT IS NOT FOLLOWING UNITED STATES LAW. WHEN THE PRESIDENT IS THREATENING THE ELIMINATION OF A CIVILIZATION OF PEOPLE, I WOULD ARGUE THAT THAT IS BREAKING U.S. LAW, FEDERAL LAW, GLOBAL LAW, AS WELL. OKAY. THE REPUBLICAN PARTY OF NEW MEXICO RELEASING THIS STATEMENT TO US JUST A SHORT TIME AGO, SAYING IN PART, MAKE NO MISTAKE, THE WAY PRESIDENT TRUMP HAS DEALT WITH IRAN HAS FUNDAMENTALLY MADE OUR COUNTRY SAFER. AS THE PRESIDENT HAS STATED, OUR MILITARY OBJECTIVES IN IRAN ARE NEARLY FINISHED. AND THE TWO WEEK CEASEFIRE ANNOUNCED TODAY PROVES THAT WE ARE IN TOTAL CONTROL OF THIS CONFLICT. IN THE STUDIO, JOHN POLO, KOAT ACTION SEVEN NEWS TONIGHT AT TEN. OUR WASHINGTON BUREAU WILL HAVE MORE ON THIS BREAKING DEVELOPMEN

New Mexico reaction to Trump’s deadline on Iran war

Sen. Ben Ray Luján says Trump is waging an illegal war

Updated: 7:06 PM MDT Apr 7, 2026

Editorial Standards ⓘ

Protesters gathered Tuesday in front of Kirtland Air Force Base in Albuquerque, a familiar location for demonstrations, as tensions rose following the missed deadline to open the Strait of Hormuz. “What would make me happy is a universal purge of the White House and the Pentagon. There’s no reason to have these war criminals in our service, or even in our gene pool anymore,” one protester said. The Democratic Party of New Mexico called for President Trump’s impeachment in an email sent to KOAT on Tuesday. U.S. Sen. Ben Ray Luján, who was in Albuquerque that day, addressed the issue. “Do you think he should be removed from office?” asked KOAT reporter John Rupolo.”We’ll see what happens in the House of Representatives, which is where there would be any impeachment consideration or hearings,” Luján said. Luján also reacted to a social media post by Trump in which the president called for attacks on infrastructure, bridges, and power plants if a deal was not reached by Tuesday night. “There has still not been a vote that Republicans have brought to the Senate floor, giving the president the tools that any president would need to go to war and a umph. This president is going at it again recklessly,” Luján said. While Luján stopped short of labeling Trump a war criminal, he expressed strong criticism of the president’s actions. “When the president is threatening the elimination of a civilization of people, I would argue that that is breaking U.S. law. Federal law. Global law as well,” Luján said.We reached out to state Republican leaders, but they refused to comment. We also reached out to the New Mexico Republican Party and never heard back.

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. —

Protesters gathered Tuesday in front of Kirtland Air Force Base in Albuquerque, a familiar location for demonstrations, as tensions rose following the missed deadline to open the Strait of Hormuz.

“What would make me happy is a universal purge of the White House and the Pentagon. There’s no reason to have these war criminals in our service, or even in our gene pool anymore,” one protester said.

The Democratic Party of New Mexico called for President Trump’s impeachment in an email sent to KOAT on Tuesday. U.S. Sen. Ben Ray Luján, who was in Albuquerque that day, addressed the issue.

“Do you think he should be removed from office?” asked KOAT reporter John Rupolo.

“We’ll see what happens in the House of Representatives, which is where there would be any impeachment consideration or hearings,” Luján said.

Luján also reacted to a social media post by Trump in which the president called for attacks on infrastructure, bridges, and power plants if a deal was not reached by Tuesday night.

“There has still not been a vote that Republicans have brought to the Senate floor, giving the president the tools that any president would need to go to war and a umph. This president is going at it again recklessly,” Luján said.

While Luján stopped short of labeling Trump a war criminal, he expressed strong criticism of the president’s actions.

“When the president is threatening the elimination of a civilization of people, I would argue that that is breaking U.S. law. Federal law. Global law as well,” Luján said.

We reached out to state Republican leaders, but they refused to comment. We also reached out to the New Mexico Republican Party and never heard back.

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