Margaret Keane, an artist who became famous as “the painter without the big eyes”, died Sunday from heart failure at her California home at the age of 1994. On Wednesday, her family announced her death. Her husband claimed for years that she was responsible for her paintings. These often featured children with sad eyes and large eyes. The nightmare of a legal battle was over, but the artist recovered her work and her dignity in court. In 2014, Tim Burton presented her story on the big screen with ‘Big Eyes.
Although his work was once vilified, it is now regarded as one of the most important pieces of pop culture. Collectors pay up to 200,000 Euros for his paintings.
Her official Facebook page stated that Margaret Keane (‘The Big Eyed Mum,’ our queen and a legend in Modern teaching, has passed away.
Hawaiian Girl with Parrot by Margaret Keane / Keane-eyes.com
Peggy Doris Hawkins, the maiden name for the artist, was born in Nashville, Tennessee, in 1927. After studying design in New York, she found a job painting baby beds in the 1950s. Before meeting Walter Keane, she quickly developed her own style of painting. Keane, her husband, claimed the authorship of many of the features. Paintings with googly-eyed characters, signed by Keane, which he then began to sell as his own.
The painter was convinced that it was “a better solution”, and she agreed to the hoax. Her paintings became so popular in the 1960s that they were bought by celebrities like Joan Crawford, Dean Martin, and Natalie Wood. “I think Keane’s work is amazing. He must be a good person. Andy Warhol said at the time that if it was bad, many people wouldn’t enjoy it.” Then, the critics killed her.
Walter threatened to kill her if the secret was made public. The couple split in 1965, and it was discovered that she was the true author of the paintings in 1970. She sued Walter Keane and USA Today in 1986 for claiming that he was responsible for the paintings. The jury requested that the couple paint a picture of the room. Walter refused and claimed he had suffered a shoulder injury. Although Margaret won the trial, the jury ruled in her favor. However, she did not receive the four million dollar in damages she requested at the judgment. Walter Keane had declared bankruptcy.
Walter, who was 85 years old, died in bankruptcy in 2000. The artist married Dan McGuire, a sportswriter. She was offered the opportunity to take her life to the cinemas many times over, but she turned them down. She was not able to accept the script Scott Alexander and Larry Karaszewski wrote until she saw it.
The project was stalled until Tim Burton rescued it and brought his story to the screen in “Big Eyes” starring Amy Adams. This film generated a brief revival in the popularity of his paintings, but for Burton, the film was “a trauma experience.”
