Though painter Georgia O’Keeffe and ceramist Maria Martinez apparently never knew each other, they had a lot in common. The most renowned artists associated with the American Southwest, O’Keeffe and Martinez were active at the same time. Both lived in New Mexico - O’Keeffe in and near Abiquiú and Martinez in San Ildefonso Pueblo - and both drew inspiration from the desert.

"Canvas to Clay: Georgia O’Keeffe & Maria Martinez to Mata Ortiz & Tonalá," a focus exhibition, brings together four paintings by O’Keeffe and three black pottery vessels by Martinez with ceramics from SAMA’s Latin American collection, including works from Mata Ortiz, Chihuahua, and Tonalá, Jalisco. In dialogue, the works bespeak a deep sensitivity to landscape and earth. They also attest to the longstanding cultural connection between what is now the Southwestern United States and Northern Mexico.

Three paintings by O’Keeffe come to SAMA from the Cleveland Museum of Art through Art Bridges and the vessels by Martinez and an additional painting by O’Keeffe are on loan from the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston. "Canvas to Clay" celebrates both artists while examining O’Keeffe’s work within the context of Indigenous art practices.