January 25th, 2016 04:59 am
The other day I watched Tim Burton's movie "Big Eyes", and was so captured by the plot that I forgot about everything. The film tells about real events in the life of the artist Margaret Keane, who for many years concealed, intimidated by her second husband Walter Keane, the authorship of her paintings, which were sold under his name.
The tragedy of a woman in art
Walter Keane married Margaret, a divorced woman with a child. She tried to earn for her life and the life of her daughter with what she knew how - drawing. On the square, along with other amateur artists, she traded her paintings. Margaret painted portraits, mainly of women and children. A distinctive feature of all her portraits were disproportionately large eyes. As she explained, "the eyes are the mirror of the soul", and therefore she tried to express emotions better, to emphasize them through the eyes.
Walter Keane spotted a young girl, in whose pictures individuality was guessed. He himself only dabbled in painting, drawing the streets of Paris (as it turned out later, just smearing with a brush and putting his signature under other people's paintings). He made a living by selling houses. He had a real merchant's product. He could sell anything to anyone.
Along with his works, he began to exhibit his wife's works in local cafes, passing them off as his own. After all, she bore his last name, and therefore signed "Kin". Upon learning of her husband's dishonesty, Margaret tried with tears in her eyes to explain to him how mean and dishonest of him, but he convinced her that society was biased towards "women's art."
For many years they managed to lead everyone by the nose, opening more and more successful exhibitions. Walter Keane developed the business of selling his wife's paintings in such a way that he sold not only the canvases themselves, but also their reproductions, posters and even postcards.
The woman remained in the shadow of her husband for many years, even tried to change her own style of painting, some of which she signed with her own name. Even incomplete, but only the initials of the name, while adding the name of the spouse. She partly copied the style of Modigliani, only on her canvases the portraits of women invariably had sad faces, reflecting the tragedy that the artist had carried in herself for many years.
Only in 1964 did she have the courage to leave her husband, leaving with her daughter to live in Hawaii. It took another 6 years to tell people the truth. Walter defended his version of events to the end, even in court, where he refused to paint a portrait of a child with big eyes, inventing a pain in his shoulder. Margaret painted the portrait, thus proving her authorship of all the other works that for a long time were considered the property of her ex-husband.
This story once again proves that it is difficult for a woman to make her way everywhere, but this does not mean that one must resign herself to fate and silently endure humiliation. You need to defend your rights, even if you are afraid or intimidated, otherwise you risk losing your individuality and self-respect!
Appeared out of nowhere in the late 50s of the last century, and came up with a new direction in painting pop art American artist Walter Keane for a whole decade becomes the "king of contemporary art", the most famous art artist on a global scale. Nothing, it would seem, could destroy the empire created by the artist. But suddenly shocking facts surfaced, and the whole world froze in anticipation of an answer to the question: who is really behind the paintings depicting touching and sentimental children and women with exaggerated "big eyes" similar to aliens.
Who is the real genius anyway?
Margaret and Walter Keane, having met at an exhibition in 1955, soon got married. By that time, Margo was divorced, had a young daughter, and was an aspiring artist. And Walter was a very talented entrepreneur, so he immediately calculated his benefits from this marriage. He enthusiastically responded to his wife's artwork, inspired to create new ones.
Soon, with the permission of his wife, Walter began to sell paintings near the entrance to one of the clubs in San Francisco. Trade brought good money. So far, Margot was completely unaware and did not know what her husband was up to, what scam he had dragged her into. And when everything surfaced, the artist was shocked: Walter, selling her paintings, passed off as his works.
Margot tried to defend her right to authorship, but her husband said that the scam had gone too far, and exposure threatened with lawsuits. For a long time he persuaded his wife not to make public the fact of pseudo-authorship. One of the weighty arguments that society does not and will never accept a woman in the field of art made Margaret agree to silence.
In the first half of the 60s, there was a peak in the popularity and demand for paintings written by Margo. Reproductions of her creations sold in millions of copies, and the heroes of the paintings were depicted wherever possible: on calendars, postcards and even kitchen aprons. The original paintings themselves were sold out at lightning speed for a lot of money. About Walter Keane, posing as the author, then they said: “... he sells paintings. And pictures of paintings. And postcards of pictures of pictures. The impostor made a decisive bet on the art of PR and did not lose.
And the artist worked on her masterpieces for 16 hours daily, while her husband, reveling in fame and recognition, having constant connections on the side, led an idle lifestyle.
In 1964, Walter demanded that Margot create an extraordinary creation that would perpetuate his name in world art. Margo had no choice but to create such a masterpiece. It was a huge canvas "Tomorrow forever." It shocked everyone with its tragedy: a whole column of walking children of different races with sad faces and big eyes. This work was regarded by art critics as extremely negative. Margo's husband was furious.
big eyes" to the press. Walter Keane, furious and furious, insults and threatens his ex-wife with violence.
The proceedings were held in court, and the whole world then, with bated breath, was waiting for the denouement. The judge resorted to the simplest way to judge the former spouses, requiring the plaintiff and the defendant to draw the face of a child with characteristic eyes. What Margot did was great: the artist proved the authorship of her works right on the process, drawing a baby with big eyes in just 53 minutes. But Walter refused, citing a pain in his shoulder.
According to the statement of claim, Walter Keane had to pay his wife four million dollars in compensation. However, for another 20 years he filed counterclaims against his ex-wife, accusing her of slander. As a result, in 1990, the Federal Court of Appeal overturned the award.
Margaret Keane did not challenge the court's decision. "I do not need money,- she said. - I just wanted everyone to know that the paintings were mine." And she added: “My involvement in the deception lasted for twelve years and is something I will always regret. However, it taught me to appreciate the opportunity to be truthful and that neither fame, nor love, nor money, nor anything else is worth a guilty conscience.
Since then, from the canvases of Margo, not so sad and melancholic children and women have already looked, on their faces one could already see the shadow of a smile.
Over the years, interest in Margaret's paintings gradually began to fade. The public, fed up with "big eyes", was looking for new idols in art.
And the best works of the artist have found their home in museums of modern art in the United States and many capitals of the world. Margaret Keane's "big eyes" sell for hundreds of thousands of dollars at auction togas.
https://static.kulturologia.ru/files/u21941/Margaret-Keane-0033.jpg" alt="Director Tim Burton. ¦ Photo: artchive.ru." title="Directed by Tim Burton. ¦ Photo: artchive.ru." border="0" vspace="5">!}
Announcement of the film "Big Eyes" directed by Tim Burton in the video:
This year in September Margaret will be 90 years old, she lives with her husband in the state of North Carolina in the USA, and sometimes she paints her paintings with “big eyes”.
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The story of a great scandal. The Greatest Scam in 20th Century Art
Foreword
The enchanting fame of the artist Walter Keane in the middle of the last century was amazing. His paintings were extremely popular all over the world. Reproductions of his works were sold in almost all stores and gas stations in America and Europe. Posters depicting paintings hung in student and worker dormitories. Postcards were sold in all kiosks. Walter made millions. And the reason for the success was clear: he painted charming kids with huge eyes - like saucers. Some critics called the "big-eyed" kitsch, others - masterpieces. Nevertheless, eminent collectors and museums of the world considered it an honor to acquire these canvases.
And how shocked the public was when they found out that the author of these paintings was the wife of Walter Keane. She worked for him as a guest worker in the basement or in a room with curtained windows and a closed door for many years. These beautiful big-eyed children were painted by Margaret Keane. Tired of humiliation, she sued her husband - she told the whole world who the real author of the works was. And she won, receiving $ 4 million for moral damages.
The incredible story did not leave indifferent the famous director and admirer of Keane's talent Tim Burton. In Hollywood, he made a film about the greatest scam in the art world of the 20th century. The picture comes out on Russian screens on January 15, 2015.
"Saccharin, kitsch, madness"
Incredibly huge eyes, like saucers, on the faces of small charming children. Somehow very sad. With tears in his eyes. With wet cats in your arms. Dressed in costumes of harlequins and ballerinas. Lonely sitting in the fields among the flowers. Innocent and lost. Thoughtful and strict.
Such touching paintings of sad children became extremely popular throughout the world in the 1950s and 1960s. Reproductions of paintings with sad children were then sold in almost all stores and gas stations in America and Europe. Posters were hung in student and worker dormitories, postcards were sold in every kiosk.
Art critics treated the sentimental "big-eyed" in different ways. Some called the paintings "delightful masterpieces." Others - "simplicity of images." The third - "art sensation". Fourth - "tasteless clumsy work."
The well-known American publicist, editor and founder of Feral House publishing house Adam Parfrey spoke about the paintings in general in three words (it's good that they are not obscene): "Sakharin, kitsch, madness."
And the Archbishop of New York, Cardinal Timothy Dolan, called the paintings just "weepy folk art."
But the people were crazy about these big-eyed children! Then these works were exhibited in galleries in San Francisco, New York, Chicago, New Orleans... Today you can admire them in the most prestigious museums in the world: the National Museum of Modern Art in Madrid, the National Museum of Western Art in Tokyo, the National Museum of Modern Art in Mexico City, the Museum of Fine Arts in Bruges, the Museum of Fine Arts in Tennessee, the Hawaii State Capitol and even the United Nations Headquarters in New York. Faerie Glory!
Incredibly huge eyes like saucers on the faces of small adorable kids.
Somehow very sad.
"Delirium of a Crazy"
For 30 years, Walter Keane was considered the author of wonderful creations. Hollywood actress Jane Howard even made such an unexpected comparison in 1965: "If everyone compares the outstanding jazz musician and composer Howard Johnson to super-delicious ice cream, then Walter can be called the Big Eye of Art."
“Kin makes amazing portraits! - admired another admirer of Walter's talent - an American artist, magazine publisher and film director Andy Warhol. “If it wasn’t, then he wouldn’t have so many fans.”
Walter was praised in his time by the very famous American artists Thomas Kinkade, Dale Chihuly and Lisa Frank. And such stars of the time as American Hollywood actresses Joan Crawford, Natalie Wood and Kim Novak, as well as leading rock and roll artist Jerry Lewis, were even asked to paint their portraits in this then new striking style.
"Kin makes amazing portraits!"
Andy Warhole
Walter earned millions of dollars in year. Wife - not a penny.
But Walter was lying. As it turned out, his wife, the brilliant artist Margaret, as a guest worker, painted in a closed basement. Or in a room with curtained windows and a closed door. She voluntarily gave herself into slavery to support her husband's success. And Walter, having received the “product”, just put his signature at the bottom of the canvas. The wife covered her husband for a long time, praising him in articles and interviews. Walter himself called his success a "creative union of artists", one of whom simply mixed paints, referring to his wife. Any attempts by his wife to tell the truth, he called "nonsense of a madwoman." Walter was making millions of dollars a year. Wife - not a penny. All this time she was a hostage to her own talent and the tyranny of her husband.
Why is there sadness if God is good?
Margaret Keane was born in 1927 in Tennessee. Now she is 88 years old. For her age, she looks great. Here is what she says about herself in her short autobiography:
“I was a sickly child. I often felt miserable and lonely. At the same time, I was also very shy. Started painting early...
I grew up in the southern part of the United States in what is often referred to as the "Bible Belt" Perhaps this place influenced my faith. And my grandmother instilled in me a deep respect for the Bible, even though I was not well versed in religious matters.
I was a sickly child.
often felt feel unhappy, lonely.
I grew up believing in God, but because I was naturally inquisitive, I had many questions that remained unanswered.
I was tormented by questions about the meaning of life. Why are we here? Why are there pain, sorrow, and death if God is good? I had a lot of whys. These questions, it seems to me, were later reflected in the eyes of the children in my paintings.
The domestic tyrant forced her to paint pictures and be silent.
"I will kill your daughter if you reveal the secret"
Margaret married Walter Keane in 1955. Both had families prior to this meeting. By her own admission, eight of the ten years of her marriage to him were the most terrible in her life. The domestic tyrant forced her to paint pictures and be silent. He wanted fame and money.
In 1965, their marriage broke up. She left home in San Francisco. And settled in Hawaii. She married sports writer Dan McGuire in 1970 in Honolulu.
But at parting, Walter threatened Margaret: if she stopped drawing for him, he would kill both her and her daughter from her first marriage. The unfortunate woman vowed that she would continue to secretly write for him.
She confessed to her new husband with tears in her eyes: “You are the only one to whom I can tell my secret. I painted each of these paintings, each portrait with big eyes was created by me. But no one but you will know about it. And you should also keep quiet, because Walter is a terrible person.
But time will pass, and Margaret herself will want to get rid of her humiliating slavery. One day she said to herself: “Enough is enough! Enough of these lies. From now on, I will only speak the truth."
You are the only one I can tell my secret to.
Eyes say more about a person than he knows about himself
Her work during her marriage to Walter, when she lived in his shadow, tends to depict sad children and women. And most often - on a dark background. But after the divorce and moving to Hawaii, the pictures became more interesting, brighter and more joyful. This is noted by all admirers of her talent. In social networks, she now advertises her paintings as "Tears of Joy" and "Tears of Happiness."
“Questions about the meaning of being, it seems to me, were later reflected in the eyes of my children on canvases,” Margaret admitted in her autobiography. – Eyes for me are always something like a “coordinating center” of a person, because the soul is reflected and lives in them. I am sure that the spiritual essence of most people is concentrated in them, and they - the eyes - say more about a person than he knows about himself and what others think about him. You just have to look deep into them."
"You only need look in deep in them deep».
If Margaret were asked how inspiration came to her during the time when she lived with her tyrant husband, she would most likely shrug her shoulders and answer: “I don’t know.” Pictures just poured out of her.
“But now,” she says, “I know how all these extraordinary images were born. These sad children were, in fact, my own deep feelings that I could not express in any other way. It was in their eyes that I was looking for answers to my questions: why is there so much grief in the world? Why do we have to get sick and die? Why do people shoot each other? Why do relatives humiliate their relatives?
And quietly adds:
- And I would also like to know the answer, why did my husband do this to me? He behaved like a despot. Why did I have to suffer so much? Why am I in this chaos?
These sad children were actually mine own deep feelings.
“When I went to the bedroom, I found my husband with prostitutes there”
Margaret led a reclusive life. It was this existence that her husband Walter had created for her. And he himself lived a secular life - stormy and depraved.
“He was always surrounded by three or four girls,” Margaret recalls. They swam naked in the pool. The girls were drunk and arrogant. Seeing me, they threw insulting remarks. It happened that when I went to bed after a day of work at the easel, I found Walter there with three prostitutes.
There were also very eminent guests visiting the Keanes. For example, they were often visited by show business stars: the popular American rock band The Beach Boys, French chansonnier and actor Maurice Chevalier, musical movie star Howard Keel. But Margaret rarely saw them, because she was painting for 16 hours a day.
Later, journalists asked her:
Did the servants know what was going on?
“No, the door was always locked,” she answered grimly. - And the curtains are closed.
The newspapermen were shocked:
“Have you lived all these years with your curtains closed?”
“Yes,” Margaret recalls with a shudder. “Sometimes, when his girls came to him, he escorted me to the basement. And when he wasn't home, he used to call every hour to make sure I didn't run away. All these years I lived like in a prison.
“But did you know about his affairs? The fact that he sold your paintings for a lot of money? meticulous journalists asked.
“I didn't care what he did,” she shrugged.
All these years I lived like in a prison.
"He had a very colorful life."
Joan Keene
A newspaper chronicle testifies to the recklessness of Walter. So, in San Francisco, his rude antics were noted in newspaper articles and notes. For example, it was written about his skirmish with the owner of the yacht club Enrico Banducci. The case was taken to court. Keane was charged with hooliganism, but the lawyer won an acquittal.
Witnesses to the case said that Walter beat a woman in the hostel, threw a heavy phone book at Banducci, and then "crawled on the floor with a hat made of napkins."
“He had a very colorful life,” laughed his first wife, Joan Keane.
“He punched my only friend, a dog, in the stomach.”
During one of the interviews, Margaret was asked:
You must have been very lonely.
“Yes,” agreed Margaret, “because my husband did not allow me to have friends. If I tried to elude him, he immediately followed me. I had the only friend at home - a chihuahua dog, I loved her very much. This little dog meant so much to me. And Walter once took and kicked her in the stomach. And ordered to get rid of her. I had to give the dog to a shelter.
The husband was very jealous and domineering. He once seriously warned me: "If you ever tell the truth about yourself and about me, I will destroy you." And hit me in the face. He scared me a lot. I believed in his threats: he could do whatever he wanted. I knew that among the mafiosi he had many acquaintances. He tried to hit me again, but I said, “Where I come from, men don't hit women. If you raise your hand to me again, I will leave.” After that, he fell silent.
"If you ever tell the truth about yourself and me, I will destroy you."
Walter Keane
Walter demanded that Margaret do more and more paintings every year.
But Margaret regrets that she let him do everything else, which was even worse.
– For example, he would come home from parties and immediately demand that I show him what I drew during his absence. And I resignedly obeyed.
Walter demanded that Margaret do more and more paintings every year. He often dictated his subjects, which, in his opinion, could be commercially successful: "Do one portrait with a clown costume." Or: "Draw two children on a horse."
Prophetic dream of Walter's grandmother
- One day my husband had the idea that I would create a huge canvas, and he would hang this “his” masterpiece at the UN headquarters or in the White House. I didn't say exactly, and I didn't ask. But he gave me a hard time - one month. Then I worked all day long. Virtually no sleep.
The masterpiece was called "Tomorrow Forever". It depicts hundreds of children of all faiths with big sad eyes. They stand in a column that stretches to the horizon.
In 1964, the organizers of the World Exhibition (Expo (Expo) - an international exhibition that is a symbol of industrialization and an open platform for demonstrating technical and technological achievements. - Ed.) hung the canvas in their education pavilion. Walter felt at the pinnacle of success and was very proud of his "achievement".
Walter felt at the pinnacle of success and was very proud of his "achievement".
In his memoirs, he wrote that his already deceased grandmother told him about her extraordinary vision. It was as if Michelangelo himself appeared to her in a dream and said that he was a close friend of the Keene family, or even a distant relative, and put his name on one of "his" canvases. And leaving, Michelangelo said: "The masterpieces of your grandson tomorrow and forever will live in the hearts and minds of people, just like my work in the Sistine Chapel."
But maybe it was not a grandmother's dream, but Walter himself?
"Masterpieces of your grandson tomorrow and forever will live on in the hearts and minds of people just like my work in the Sistine Chapel."
Walter was not one of the melancholic people that he was. allegedly portrayed on their canvases.
"Insolent and greedy type"
Walter Stanley Keane was born on October 7, 1915 in Lincoln, Nebraska, USA. He died on December 27, 2000 at the age of 85. He was 12 years older than Margaret.
Walter was very popular with TV reporters because of his eccentric behavior, manner of speaking about himself in the third person and not hiding his vanity and disdain for others. "Impudent and greedy type" - this is how journalists spoke about him.
Here is what The Guardian columnist Jon Ronson wrote about him: "Walter was not one of the melancholy people he supposedly portrayed in his canvases." According to his biographers, Adam Parfrey and Cletus Nelson, CEO of Feral House, he was a terrible drunk. More than anything, he loved himself and women. Didn't miss a single skirt. He lied a lot and without a twinge of conscience.
This is how Walter recalled his first meeting with Margaret in his 1983 memoir: “Margaret approached me at an open art exhibition in San Francisco in 1955. “I love your pictures,” she told me. “You are the greatest artist I have ever seen. And you are the most beautiful. It's a pity that the children in your pictures are so sad. It hurts me to look into their eyes. I would like to ask you for permission to touch your paintings with your hands in order to feel this childish sadness. But I categorically told her: “No, never touch my paintings.” I was then still an unknown artist. Yes, and many more years will pass after this meeting until they begin to receive me in the best houses of America and Europe.
Walter then describes the moment of their intimacy with Margaret. Tells a lot of intimate moments. And, according to him, the next morning after a stormy night, Margaret allegedly confessed to him: “You are the greatest lover in the world.” They soon got married.
Margaret, on the other hand, recalls their first meeting in a completely different way: “He dragged me into bed by force, and in the morning he said that I would be his fictitious wife and would work for him as much as needed - to draw children with big eyes, because they sell well on the market . And for disagreeing, he threatened to ruin my life: not to let me draw for myself. I had to agree." But after some time she admitted: “Actually, then he just oozed charm. He could charm anyone."
“Actually, back then he was just oozing with charm. He could charm anyone".
The life of a domestic tyrant
Walter grew up in a family with ten other children. His father Stanley Keane was born in Ireland and his mother was from Denmark. The Keanes' home was near downtown Lincoln, where they made most of their money by selling shoes. He also got into this business. In the early 1930s, Walter moved to Los Angeles, California, where he graduated from City College. In the 1940s he moved to Berkeley with his fiancee Barbara. Both were real estate brokers. They were selling houses.
Their first child, a son, died shortly after birth in the hospital. In 1947, they had a healthy baby girl, Susan Hale Keene. Walter and Barbara bought a huge house designed by famous architect Julia Morgan, who designed Hearst Castle in her time.
In 1948, the Keene family traveled around Europe. She lived in Heidelberg, then in Paris. And it was in the French capital that Walter began to study art, painting, first of all, nude. His wife Barbara was a culinary student and studied dress design at various fashion houses in Paris. When they returned home to Berkeley, they went into other business. They came up with the Susie Keane Puppeteens, a learning toy that taught children how to speak French and used gramophone records and books to teach. The largest room in their house, the “banquet hall,” became a workshop that housed what was essentially an assembly line for making toys—wooden dolls with various elaborate costumes. The dolls were sold in expensive stores like Saks Fifth Avenue.
And it was in the French capital that Walter began to study art, painting, first of all, nude.
Barbara Keene later became head of fashion design at the University of California at Berkeley. And Walter Keane subsequently closed his real estate office and toy company in order to devote his time to painting.
He divorced Barbara in 1952. And in 1953, at one of the art exhibitions, Walter met Margaret. She was married to Frank Ulbrish, with whom she had a daughter, Jane. He lived with Margaret for ten years. After his divorce from Margaret, Walter married his third wife, Joan Mervyn, a Canadian. Lived in London. They had two children, but this marriage also ended in divorce.
"My soul was scarred"
Keane told reporters that the idea of painting big-eyed children came to him when he was studying painting in Europe as a student.
“My soul was as if scarred while studying art in Berlin in 1946 - then the world was moving away from the horrors of World War II,” he said with pathos. - The memory of the war and the torment of innocent people was indestructible. It was read in the eyes of all survivors of this nightmare. Especially in the eyes of children.
I saw children with huge eyes in thin faces fighting over the remains of the festive food that someone had thrown into the trash can. Then I felt real despair, and even fury. In those moments, I made the first pencil sketches of these dirty, sad, angry, ragged victims of the war with their crippled minds and bodies, with their matted hair and perpetual coryza. There I started a new life as an artist who draws children with big eyes.
Memory of war and torment innocent people was indestructible.
After all, in children's eyes all the questions and answers of humanity are hidden. I am sure that if humanity looks deep into the souls of small children, then it will always follow the right path without any navigators. I wanted other people to know about these eyes, so I started drawing them. I want my paintings to reach your hearts and make you scream, 'Do something!'"
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Since 2012, Tim Burton (Hollywood) has been filming a film about the artist Margaret Keane (Amy Adams), who has been a Jehovah's Witness for over 40 years. In Awake! for July 8, 1975 (eng) her detailed biography was published.
Below you can read it in Russian.
Film is history.
From January 15, 2015, the film "Big Eyes" will appear in the Russian box office. In English, the premiere of the film is scheduled for December 25, 2014. Surely, the director added colors to the plot, but in general, this is the life story of Margaret Keane. So soon many people in Russia will watch the drama "Big Eyes"!Here you can already watch the trailer in Russian:
The main character of the film "Big Eyes" is the famous artist Margaret Keane, who was born in Tennessee in 1927.
Margaret attributes the inspiration for the art to a deep respect for the Bible and a close relationship with her grandmother. In the film, Margaret is a sincere, decent and modest woman who learns to stand up for herself.
In the 1950s, Margaret becomes a celebrity for her paintings of children with big eyes. In huge quantities, her works begin to be replicated, they were printed literally on every subject.
In the 1960s, the artist decided to sell her work under the name of Walter Keane, her second husband. Later, she sued her ex-husband, who refused to acknowledge this fact and tried in various ways to sue the right to her work.
Over time, Margaret meets Jehovah's Witnesses, which, according to her, greatly changes her life for the better. As she says, when she became a Jehovah's Witness, she finally found her happiness.
Biography of Margaret Keane
Below is her biography from Awake! (July 8, 1975, translation unofficial)My life as a famous artist.
YOU may have seen a picture of a pensive child with unusually large and sad eyes. It may well have been what I drew. Unfortunately, I was unhappy with the way I painted children. I grew up in the southern United States in what is often referred to as the "Bible Belt." Perhaps it was this environment or my Methodist grandmother, but it instilled in me a deep respect for the Bible, even though I knew very little about it. I grew up believing in God, but with a lot of unanswered questions. I was a sickly child, lonely and very shy, but I was early discovered to have a talent for drawing.
Big eyes, why?
Always "Why?" These questions, it seems to me, were later reflected in the eyes of the children in my paintings, which seem to be addressed to the whole world. The gaze was described as penetrating into the soul. They seemed to reflect the spiritual alienation of most people today, their longing for something outside of what this system offers.
My path to popularity in the art world has been rocky. There were two broken marriages and a lot of heartache along the way. The controversy surrounding my privacy and the authorship of my paintings has led to lawsuits, front-page pictures and even articles in the international media.
For many years I allowed my second husband to be called the author of my paintings. But one day, unable to continue with the deceit, I left him and my home in California and moved to Hawaii.
After a period of depression when I wrote very little, I began to rebuild my life and later remarried. One turning point came in 1970 when a newspaper reporter televised a competition between me and my ex-husband, which took place in Union Square in San Francisco, to establish the authorship of paintings. I was all alone, accepting the challenge. Life magazine covered the event in an article that corrected a previous erroneous story that attributed the pictures to my ex-husband. My involvement in the deception lasted for twelve years and is something I will always regret. However, it taught me to appreciate the opportunity to be truthful and that neither fame, nor love, nor money, nor anything else is worth a bad conscience.
I still had questions about life and God and they led me to look for answers in strange and dangerous places. Looking for answers, I researched the occult, astrology, palmistry, and even handwriting analysis. My love for art has motivated me to explore many ancient cultures and their philosophies which have been reflected in their art. I read volumes on Eastern philosophy and even tried transcendental meditation. My spiritual hunger led me to study the various religious beliefs of the people who came into my life.
On both sides of my family and among my friends, I have interacted with various Protestant religions other than the Methodists, including those of the Christian faith such as Mormons, Lutherans, and Unitarians. When I married my current husband, who is a Catholic, I seriously explored this religion.
I still did not find satisfactory answers, there were always contradictions and always something was missing. Other than that (without having the answers to the big questions of life), my life is finally starting to get better. I have achieved almost everything I have ever wanted. Most of my time was spent doing what I loved to do the most - painting children (mostly little girls) with big eyes. I had a wonderful husband and a wonderful marriage, a wonderful daughter and financial stability, and lived in my favorite place on earth, Hawaii. But from time to time I wondered why I was not completely satisfied, why I smoked and sometimes drank too much and why I was so tense. I didn't realize how selfish my life had become in my pursuit of personal happiness.
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Jehovah's Witnesses came often, every few weeks, to my door, but I rarely took their literature or paid any attention to them. It never occurred to me that one day a knock on my door could drastically change my life. On that particular morning, two women, one Chinese and one Japanese, showed up at my doorstep. Sometime before they arrived, my daughter showed me an article about Sabbath, not Sunday, and the importance of keeping it. It made such an impression on both of us that we started attending the Seventh-day Adventist Church. I even stopped painting on Saturday, thinking it was a sin to do so. Thus, when I asked one of these women at my door what day was Sabbath, I was surprised that she answered Saturday. Then I asked, "Why don't you keep it?" It's ironic that I, a white man raised in the Bible Belt, should seek answers from two Easterners who were probably raised in a non-Christian environment. She opened an old Bible and read directly from the scriptures, explained why Christians are no longer required to observe the Sabbath or various other features of the Mosaic law, why the law was given on the Sabbath and on the future Day of Rest - 1,000 years.
Her knowledge of the Bible made such a deep impression on me that I wanted to study the Bible further myself. I gladly accepted the book The Truth That Leads to Eternal Life, which she said could explain the basic teachings of the Bible. The following week, when the women returned, my daughter and I began to study the Bible regularly. It was one of the most important decisions in my life and led to dramatic changes in our lives. In this study of the Bible, my first and biggest obstacle was the Trinity, as I believed that Jesus was God, part of the Trinity, having this faith suddenly challenged, as if the ground had been knocked out from under my feet. It was intimidating. As my faith could not be sustained in the light of what I had read in the Bible, I suddenly felt a deeper loneliness than I had ever felt before.
I didn’t know who to pray to, and there were doubts even about whether there is a God at all. Gradually I became convinced from the Bible that Almighty God is Jehovah, the Father (not the Son), and as I learned, I began to rebuild my shattered faith, this time on the true foundation. But as my knowledge and faith began to grow, the pressures began to increase. My husband threatened to leave me and other close relatives were extremely upset. When I saw the requirements for true Christians, I looked for a way out because I didn't think I could ever testify to strangers or go door to door to talk to others about God.
My daughter, who was now studying in a nearby town, was advancing much faster. Her success has, in fact, become another hurdle for me. She believed so completely in what she was learning that she wanted to be a missionary. The plans of my only child in a faraway land scared me and I decided that I must protect her from these decisions. Thus, I began to look for a flaw. I felt that if I could find something that this organization taught that was not backed by the Bible, I could convince my daughter. With so much knowledge, I carefully looked for flaws. I ended up acquiring over ten different Bible translations, three correspondences, and many other Bible dictionaries and reference books to add to my library.
I received strange "help" from my husband, who often brought home Witness books and pamphlets. I studied them in detail, carefully weighing everything they said. But I never found fault. Instead, the fallacy of the doctrine of the Trinity, and the fact that the Witnesses know and communicate the name of the Father, the true God, as well as their love for each other and their strict adherence to the scriptures, convinced me that I had found the true religion. I was deeply impressed by the contrast between Jehovah's Witnesses and other religions on the subject of finances.
At one time my daughter and I were baptized along with forty others on August 5, 1972 in the beautiful blue Pacific Ocean, a day I will never forget. The daughter has now returned home so she can devote her full time to serving as a Witness here in Hawaii. My husband is still with us and is even amazed at the changes in both of us.
From sad eyes to happy eyes
Since dedicating my life to Jehovah, many changes have taken place in my life.
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| painting by Margaret Keane "Love changes the world." |
One of the first was that I stopped smoking. I actually lost the desire and the need. It was a habit of twenty-two years, smoking an average of a pack or more a day. I tried desperately to quit the habit because I knew it was bad but found it impossible. As my faith grew, the scripture text in 2 Corinthians 7:1 proved to be a stronger stimulus. With Jehovah's help through prayer and my faith in his promise in Malachi 3:10, the habit was finally completely defeated. Amazingly, I didn't have any withdrawal symptoms or any discomfort!
Other changes were profoundly psychological transformations in my personality. From being a very shy, introverted and withdrawn person who was looking for and needing long hours of solitude to draw and relax from my tension, I have become much more sociable. Now, I spend many hours doing what I used to hate to do, talking to people, and now I love every minute of it!
Another change has been that I spend about one quarter of the time I used to spend painting, and yet, amazingly, I achieve almost the same amount of work. However, sales and comments indicate that the paintings are getting even better. Painting used to be almost my obsession. I couldn't help but draw, because this drawing was therapy, salvation and relaxation for me, my life completely revolved around this. I still enjoy it very much, but the addiction to it and dependence on it is gone.
It is not surprising that since my knowledge of Jehovah, the Source of all creativity, the quality of my paintings has improved, although the time to complete them has decreased.
Now most of my former painting time is spent serving God, studying the Bible, teaching others, and attending five Bible study meetings at the Kingdom Hall each week. In the past two and a half years, eighteen people have begun to study the Bible with me. Eight of these people are now actively studying, each is ready to be baptized, and one has been baptized. From among their families and friends, more than thirteen began studies with other Witnesses. It has been a great joy and privilege to have the privilege of helping others to know Jehovah.
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It was not easy to give up my cherished loneliness, my own routine of life and a lot of my time for painting, and put in the first place, before anything else, the fulfillment of the commandment of Jehovah. But I was willing to try through prayer and trust to seek help from Jehovah God, and I saw that every step was supported and rewarded by Him. The proof of God's approval, help and blessing convinced me, not only spiritually, but also materially.
Looking back at my life, at my first painting done when I was about eleven years old, I see a big difference. In the past, the symbolic large, sad eyes I drew reflected the puzzling contradictions I saw in the world around me that raised so many questions in me. Now I have found in the Bible the reasons for the contradictions in life that once tormented me, as well as the answers to my questions. After I gained accurate knowledge of God and his purpose for humanity, I gained God's approval and the peace of mind and happiness that comes with it. This is reflected to a greater extent in my paintings, and many notice it. The sad, lost look of large eyes is now giving way to a happier look.
My husband even named one of my recent happy portraits - the eyed children "Eyes of the Witness"!
In this biography, you can find answers to some questions that we will not see or learn in the film.
Margaret Keane today
Margaret and her husband currently live in Northern California. Margaret continues to read the Bible every day, she is now 87 years old and now has a cameo role as an old woman sitting on a bench.
Amy Adams is studying with Margaret Keane at her studio in preparation for her role in Big Eyes.
Here is Margaret Keane at the Museum of Modern Art.
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| December 15, 2014 in New York. |
" Stand up for your rights, be brave and don't be afraid "Margaret Keane
" I hope the movie helps people never lie. Never! One tiny lie can turn into terrible, scary things.." says Keane in an interview with Entertainment Weekly.
The purpose of this article is not to urge you to watch the film, since the film does not say a word that she is a Jehovah's Witness. The film tells the story of Margaret's life before she became a Witness. But perhaps with the help of this upcoming film, one of us can start a good conversation with a person about the truth.
A selection of the most remarkable paintings Margaret Keane
Fans of the dark master are waiting for Tim Burton's newest film, sometimes admiring a selection of very large, very peculiar, so familiar eyes.
The name of the film is "Big Eyes". It tells the story of husband and wife - two artists, Margaret and Walter Keane, who rose to fame in the 1950s and 60s. Their theme was - children and girls with eyes like those of a doe, now they are reminiscent of precious moments XX - th century. Those moments in which those eyes were a symbol of a bygone era.
Reading the life story and joint work of two artists, you understand and feel the terrible character of the heroes of the paintings - sweet, sweet, but demonic - it seems that they are a mirror of the relationship between Keane and his wife.
One day they ended up in court proving to the world who was the real author of Big Eye. Was it Walter, the public face of the Keane realm? Or Margaret, a housewife, as her husband claimed, she couldn't even draw a sunset?
Life was not so easy for Margaret, and she spoke. "For many years, I let my husband take credit for my paintings. But one day, unable to bear the deception any longer, I left him and my home in California and moved to Hawaii." In 1965, she received a divorce. And in 1970, she admitted on a radio show that all the "eyes" of the paintings were hers.
In response, Walter compared himself to Rembrandt, El Greco and Michelangelo, and said that he was "amazed" by Margaret's proclamations. The solution was found - an artistic duel in front of the judges. But Walter didn't come! He stated that he had a shoulder injury and could not write. And Margaret, in front of the jury, calmly and quickly - in just 53 minutes, wrote the next Big Eyes, which ended the dispute.
The court ordered Walter to pay $4 million in damages in 1986.
There was a lot of interesting things in this story, and I think it's better to watch the film, the premiere of which - hooray (!), Is gradually approaching! Tim Burton promised her for Christmas and recently confirmed his promise.
We are waiting for a film in which the story will be disturbing, romantic and, they say, just creepy. And to the fullest enjoy Burton's biographical work, starring Amy Adams and Christoph Waltz.
Hopefully we too will have "Big Eyes" in theaters this December.
But how good are these works? Then Adam Parfrey called them "saccharin, kitsch, madness", the bishop called them "wailing folk art".And at that time, the buyer continued to absorb ineverything from postcards to large canvases.
Now many critics call these works amazing masterpieces, and paintings by Margaret Keane are in public collections around the world: the National Museum of Modern Art, Madrid; National Museum of Western Art, Tokyo; National Museum of Modern Art, Mexico City; Musee Communal Des Beaux-Arts, Bruges; Tennessee Museum of Fine Arts, Nashville, TN; Brooks Memorial Museum, Memphis, TN; Hawaii State Capitol, Honolulu; United Nations, New York and others.
So, December is the month of the premiere, and of course, the film must be amazing, because in that bizarre universe created by Tim Burton with inimitable black humor, there is not a single dull moment!
