Walter Keane
Encyclopedia
Walter Stanley Keane was an American
artist working in San Francisco. He gained fame as a painter who, together with his wife Margaret Keane
, produced a large number of kitsch
paintings, characterized by large-eyed waif
s.
in 1915, one of 10 children from his father's second marriage. He grew up near the center of Lincoln and made money by selling shoes. In the early 1930s he moved to Los Angeles, California
where he attended Los Angeles City College
. He entered into business, and first met Margaret in 1947. He married her in 1955, and subsequently closed his Berkeley, California
real estate firm to devote full time to painting, having studied art in Paris as a young man.
as an art student. He is quoted as saying, "My psyche was scarred in my art student days in Europe, just after World War II, by an ineradicable memory of war-wracked innocents. In their eyes lurk all of mankind's questions and answers. If mankind would look deep into the soul of the very young, he wouldn't need a road map. I wanted other people to know about those eyes, too. I want my paintings to clobber you in the heart and make you yell, 'DO SOMETHING!"
In 1957, after having been painting full time for nine years, Keane decided it would be "a good idea" to display his work at the Outsider Art
show being held in Washington Square
in Manhattan
. In 1959 he and wife Margaret were referred to as "the family that paints together sells together". In a New York
exhibition, patrons bought 20 pieces of Walter's, 20 of Margaret's, and six painted by their daughters Susan and Jane. In 1961, The Prescolite Manufacturing Corporation bought Keane's painting Our Children and presented it to the United Nations Children's Fund
. It is in the United Nations permanent collection of art. In 1965 Keane was named "one of the most controversial and most successful painters at work today", with his works owned by many celebrities and hanging in many permanent collections.
, with Margaret representing her as a "pensive, sophisticated woman" and Walter portraying her as a "wistful, wide-eyed waif", as well as additional photos showing the two Keanes at work in their studio, both painting 'big-eyed' portraits, with the figures in Walter's work having their eyes more exaggerated than those of Margaret's.
The couple separated in November 1964 and a divorce was granted in May 1965. After their separation, and in speaking about how the two met, Margaret stated "It was the eyes that did it. I liked the way he painted eyes and he liked mine." "...I admire his genius tremendously." By 1970, Margaret was remarried, having wed Honolulu sportswriter Dan McGuire.
The dispute between Margaret and Walter began after release of a news article in which Walter compared himself to Rembrandt and El Greco
. In a response at odds with released photographs of the two at work and her own earlier published remarks, Margaret stated that it was actually she who did all the 'eyes' paintings and then issued a public challenge to Walter for a "paint off" to be held in San Francisco's Union Square. Walter chose to ignore Margaret's challenge, being initially "flabbergasted and at a loss for words", and then later "amused by the claims". Margaret appeared and produced a painting, but Walter did not attend.
In 1984, Margaret continued asserting that her ex-husband "couldn't learn to paint at all", and challenged Walter to another paint-off. In an announcement of the new challenge, she was quoted as saying, "Let him paint or shut up". Walter had suggested to USA Today
that Margaret was claiming credit for the pictures only because she thought he was dead. In response, she slapped him with a slander suit. During the 1986 lawsuit, a federal judge in Honolulu, Hawaii
ordered both Walter and Margaret Keane to paint pictures for the jury. Margaret produced a painting in 53 minutes, while Walter pleaded that he was taking medication for a painfully injured shoulder and declined to paint. Margaret had also brought in drawings she had done when an eleven-year-old child that had similarly over-sized eyes. Losing the lawsuit, he was ordered to pay her $4 million for emotional distress and damaged reputation.
Even having lost the suit, Keane continued to insist that he was the creator of the big-eyed children. Walter Keane, who habitually referred to himself in the third person, took special pride in the eyes, which were part of the reason for his commercial success. Their dispute continued for decades, with both Walter and Margaret claiming to be creators of the large eye motif. In 1991, he was quoted as saying, "I painted the waifs of the world." Rumours of Keane having died in 1993 were dispelled when he showed up in early December at a location in Brentwood
to autograph copies of his autobiography, The World of Keane.
Keane was 85 when he died 7 years later, on December 27, 2000, in Encinitas, California
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
artist working in San Francisco. He gained fame as a painter who, together with his wife Margaret Keane
Margaret Keane
Margaret Keane is an American artist. She is an illustrator and painter, and mainly draws women and children in oil or mixed media. Her works are instantly recognizable from the doe-eyed children that are depicted in the drawings.-Biography:Margaret D. H...
, produced a large number of kitsch
Kitsch
Kitsch is a form of art that is considered an inferior, tasteless copy of an extant style of art or a worthless imitation of art of recognized value. The concept is associated with the deliberate use of elements that may be thought of as cultural icons while making cheap mass-produced objects that...
paintings, characterized by large-eyed waif
Waif
A waif is a living creature removed, by hardship, loss or other helpless circumstance, from his original surroundings...
s.
Background
Keane was born in Lincoln, NebraskaLincoln, Nebraska
The City of Lincoln is the capital and the second-most populous city of the US state of Nebraska. Lincoln is also the county seat of Lancaster County and the home of the University of Nebraska. Lincoln's 2010 Census population was 258,379....
in 1915, one of 10 children from his father's second marriage. He grew up near the center of Lincoln and made money by selling shoes. In the early 1930s he moved to Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
where he attended Los Angeles City College
Los Angeles City College
Los Angeles City College, known as LACC, is a public community college in the East Hollywood section of Los Angeles, California. A part of the Los Angeles Community College District, it is located on Vermont Avenue south of Santa Monica Boulevard...
. He entered into business, and first met Margaret in 1947. He married her in 1955, and subsequently closed his Berkeley, California
Berkeley, California
Berkeley is a city on the east shore of the San Francisco Bay in Northern California, United States. Its neighbors to the south are the cities of Oakland and Emeryville. To the north is the city of Albany and the unincorporated community of Kensington...
real estate firm to devote full time to painting, having studied art in Paris as a young man.
Art
Keane claimed that his inspiration for the big eyed children came when he was in EuropeEurope
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
as an art student. He is quoted as saying, "My psyche was scarred in my art student days in Europe, just after World War II, by an ineradicable memory of war-wracked innocents. In their eyes lurk all of mankind's questions and answers. If mankind would look deep into the soul of the very young, he wouldn't need a road map. I wanted other people to know about those eyes, too. I want my paintings to clobber you in the heart and make you yell, 'DO SOMETHING!"
In 1957, after having been painting full time for nine years, Keane decided it would be "a good idea" to display his work at the Outsider Art
Outsider Art
The term outsider art was coined by art critic Roger Cardinal in 1972 as an English synonym for art brut , a label created by French artist Jean Dubuffet to describe art created outside the boundaries of official culture; Dubuffet focused particularly on art by insane-asylum inmates.While...
show being held in Washington Square
Washington Square Park
Washington Square Park is one of the best-known of New York City's 1,900 public parks. At 9.75 acres , it is a landmark in the Manhattan neighborhood of Greenwich Village, as well as a meeting place and center for cultural activity...
in Manhattan
Manhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
. In 1959 he and wife Margaret were referred to as "the family that paints together sells together". In a New York
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
exhibition, patrons bought 20 pieces of Walter's, 20 of Margaret's, and six painted by their daughters Susan and Jane. In 1961, The Prescolite Manufacturing Corporation bought Keane's painting Our Children and presented it to the United Nations Children's Fund
United Nations Children's Fund
United Nations Children's Fund was created by the United Nations General Assembly on December 11, 1946, to provide emergency food and healthcare to children in countries that had been devastated by World War II...
. It is in the United Nations permanent collection of art. In 1965 Keane was named "one of the most controversial and most successful painters at work today", with his works owned by many celebrities and hanging in many permanent collections.
Dispute
As early as 1957 it was reported that Margaret superimposed some of her work onto her husband's paintings, with Walter quoted as saying, "When I paint people, she usually complains that the eyes aren't big enough and proceeds to make them bigger," but photos released in 1961 showed both Walter and Margaret at the same time painting portraits of actress Natalie WoodNatalie Wood
Natalie Wood, born Natalia Nikolaevna Zacharenko was an American film and television actress. After first working in films as a child, Wood became a successful Hollywood star as a young adult, receiving three Academy Award nominations before she was 25 years old.Wood began acting in movies at the...
, with Margaret representing her as a "pensive, sophisticated woman" and Walter portraying her as a "wistful, wide-eyed waif", as well as additional photos showing the two Keanes at work in their studio, both painting 'big-eyed' portraits, with the figures in Walter's work having their eyes more exaggerated than those of Margaret's.
The couple separated in November 1964 and a divorce was granted in May 1965. After their separation, and in speaking about how the two met, Margaret stated "It was the eyes that did it. I liked the way he painted eyes and he liked mine." "...I admire his genius tremendously." By 1970, Margaret was remarried, having wed Honolulu sportswriter Dan McGuire.
The dispute between Margaret and Walter began after release of a news article in which Walter compared himself to Rembrandt and El Greco
El Greco
El Greco was a painter, sculptor and architect of the Spanish Renaissance. "El Greco" was a nickname, a reference to his ethnic Greek origin, and the artist normally signed his paintings with his full birth name in Greek letters, Δομήνικος Θεοτοκόπουλος .El Greco was born on Crete, which was at...
. In a response at odds with released photographs of the two at work and her own earlier published remarks, Margaret stated that it was actually she who did all the 'eyes' paintings and then issued a public challenge to Walter for a "paint off" to be held in San Francisco's Union Square. Walter chose to ignore Margaret's challenge, being initially "flabbergasted and at a loss for words", and then later "amused by the claims". Margaret appeared and produced a painting, but Walter did not attend.
In 1984, Margaret continued asserting that her ex-husband "couldn't learn to paint at all", and challenged Walter to another paint-off. In an announcement of the new challenge, she was quoted as saying, "Let him paint or shut up". Walter had suggested to USA Today
USA Today
USA Today is a national American daily newspaper published by the Gannett Company. It was founded by Al Neuharth. The newspaper vies with The Wall Street Journal for the position of having the widest circulation of any newspaper in the United States, something it previously held since 2003...
that Margaret was claiming credit for the pictures only because she thought he was dead. In response, she slapped him with a slander suit. During the 1986 lawsuit, a federal judge in Honolulu, Hawaii
Honolulu, Hawaii
Honolulu is the capital and the most populous city of the U.S. state of Hawaii. Honolulu is the southernmost major U.S. city. Although the name "Honolulu" refers to the urban area on the southeastern shore of the island of Oahu, the city and county government are consolidated as the City and...
ordered both Walter and Margaret Keane to paint pictures for the jury. Margaret produced a painting in 53 minutes, while Walter pleaded that he was taking medication for a painfully injured shoulder and declined to paint. Margaret had also brought in drawings she had done when an eleven-year-old child that had similarly over-sized eyes. Losing the lawsuit, he was ordered to pay her $4 million for emotional distress and damaged reputation.
Even having lost the suit, Keane continued to insist that he was the creator of the big-eyed children. Walter Keane, who habitually referred to himself in the third person, took special pride in the eyes, which were part of the reason for his commercial success. Their dispute continued for decades, with both Walter and Margaret claiming to be creators of the large eye motif. In 1991, he was quoted as saying, "I painted the waifs of the world." Rumours of Keane having died in 1993 were dispelled when he showed up in early December at a location in Brentwood
Brentwood, California
Brentwood is a city in Contra Costa County, California, United States. It is located in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area. The population is 51,481 as of 2010....
to autograph copies of his autobiography, The World of Keane.
Keane was 85 when he died 7 years later, on December 27, 2000, in Encinitas, California
Encinitas, California
Encinitas is a coastal beach city in San Diego County, California. Located within Southern California, it is approximately north of San Diego in North County and about south of Los Angeles. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 59,518, up from 58,014 at the 2000 census. Encinitas is...
.