Margaret Doris (Hawkins) McGuire (1927 - 2022)

Born 15 Sep 1927 in Nashville, Davidson, Tennessee, United States

Ancestors

Died 26 Jun 2022 at age 94 in Napa, Napa, California, United States

Margaret (Hawkins) McGuire is Notable.

Margaret (Hawkins) McGuire was born in Tennessee.

Margaret was a Jehovah's Witness

Biography

American Painter, known for the "Big Eyes" or "Waifs" paintings, since her subjects have very large eyes.

For many years Margaret's second husband, Walter Keane, claimed her art as his own. In 1970, she "outed" their true story on the radio. At their court case in 1986, the judge ordered both Margaret and Walter to paint. Walter refused, claiming a shoulder injury. It took Margaret only 53 minutes to complete a painting in front of the entire court and she won the case. For the rest of his life, Walter still claimed he was the true artist, but he never produced any more paintings to back up that claim.

She was quoted in the New York Times as saying, "In the beginning, I didn't know why I did them. They all have these large eyes. I was painting my own inner feelings. I was very sad and very confused about why there was so much sadness in the world and why God permitted wickedness... The whole thing just snowballed and then it was too late to say it wasn't him who painted them. I'll always regret that I wasn't strong enough to stand up for my rights." Regarding the difference in the sad somberness of her earlier paintings and the vibrant colorful newer works, Margaret credits her happiness to becoming a Jehovah's Witness. "These are paintings of children in paradise. They are what I think the earth is going to look like some day when God's will is done."

In the movie "Big Eyes" that premiered in 2014, Margaret was played by actress Amy Adams.

Margaret was married three times: Frank Ulbrich (with whom she had a daughter, Jane), Walter Keane and Dan McGuire.

Sources

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Margaret_Keane
• https://www.keane-eyes.com/
• Find A Grave: Memorial #241126557
• https://www.keane-eyes.com/about-margaret/
• https://www.nytimes.com/1992/02/27/garden/for-waifs-of-art-the-last-laugh.html
• https://www.nytimes.com/2014/12/21/movies/the-artist-margaret-keane-vindicated-in-tim-burtons-film.html
• https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2000-jul-31-cl-62632-story.html
• https://www.biography.com/artist/margaret-keane
• https://lamag.com/news/at-90-big-eyes-painter-margaret-keane-reflects-on-her-outsize-influence-on-lowbrow-art
• https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2014/oct/26/art-fraud-margaret-walter-keane-tim-burton-biopic
• https://news.artnet.com/art-world/margaret-keane-obituary-2139184
• https://www.geni.com/people/Margaret-Keane/6000000030391610205