Georgia O’Keeffe’s views of the New Mexico desert will be preserved with conservation plan

New Mexico Conservation Pact Protects Landscape That Inspired Georgia O’Keeffe

A landmark conservation agreement announced Tuesday will preserve approximately 10 square miles of iconic New Mexico landscape that profoundly influenced the work of renowned artist Georgia O’Keeffe, while ensuring continued access to an adjacent educational retreat.

The conservation easement covers land on the outskirts of Abiquiu village owned by a charitable foundation of Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.). The protected area includes reservoir waterfront and native grasslands extending to the vicinity of a remote home owned by O’Keeffe’s estate. Both this home and her main Abiquiu residence lie outside the conservation zone and remain under the separate management of the Georgia O’Keeffe Museum in Santa Fe.

The protected viewshed showcases the dramatic landscape familiar to admirers of O’Keeffe’s paintings—desert washes, distinctive sandstone bluffs, and the silhouette of Cerro Pedernal mountain that appeared repeatedly in her work.

“The stark colorful geology, the verdant grasslands going right down to the Chama River and Abiquiu lake—all that just makes it such a multifaceted place with tremendous conservation value,” said Jonathan Hayden, executive director of the New Mexico Land Conservancy, which helped broker the agreement and will oversee the easements.

Though no immediate development threats existed, the voluntary conservation plan establishes permanent protection against future subdivision and development that could forever alter the character of this culturally significant landscape.

The protected land has served as a backdrop for numerous film productions over decades, including a recreation of wartime Los Alamos for Christopher Nolan’s Academy Award-winning 2024 film “Oppenheimer.” Under the new agreement, limited film production access will continue, preserving this area’s role in New Mexico’s thriving film industry.

The conservation plan also honors traditional land use by allowing local farmers to continue winter grazing practices, where small herds are brought down from mountain pastures as snowfall begins—a practice that has continued for generations in northern New Mexico.

Substantial financial support for the initiative comes from New Mexico state government through a conservation trust established by legislators in 2023. The state has approved a $920,000 award to cover easement surveys, transaction costs, and to establish a financial foundation that will support programming at the adjacent Ghost Ranch Education & Retreat Center while allowing the Presbyterian Church Foundation to retain property ownership.

“This agreement preserves not just the natural beauty but also ensures continued cultural and educational access to this special place,” said David Evans, CEO of the Ghost Ranch center, which attracts approximately 10,000 overnight visitors annually for spiritual, artistic, and literary retreats, plus another 20,000 day visitors.

The current agreement represents just the initial phases of a more ambitious conservation vision. Plans call for eventually protecting more than 30 square miles of the surrounding area through additional conservation easements and public land transfers, with support from at least one wildlife foundation. These expanded protections would extend to the banks of the Chama River and preserve critical wildlife habitat throughout the region.

The landscape holds deep significance for numerous Native American communities who trace their ancestral connections to this region of northern New Mexico—the same landscape that captivated O’Keeffe when she settled here and began exploring its forms and colors in her internationally celebrated paintings.

By balancing conservation with continued educational access and traditional uses, the agreement represents a collaborative approach to protecting both the natural environment and cultural heritage of this distinctive New Mexico landscape that continues to inspire visitors from around the world.