Capitalizing on the Christmas Day release of Tim Burton’s newest film, Big Eyes, the Triton Museum of Art has gone into its vault and put nine of artist Margaret Keane’s paintings on display.
Within the Triton’s hallway, Keane’s wide-eyed, disproportionate figures stare out, beckoning viewers to look back. Keane’s body of work, which was widely popular in the 1950s and 60s, was incorrectly attributed to her husband, Walter, until a messy court case cleared up the confusion.
After the pair divorced in 1965, Margaret Keane moved to Hawaii and waited five years to drop the bombshell that she had painted all of her former husband’s pieces. Through a paint-off, she was able to finally able to emerge from her husband’s shadow and stake her claim to paintings produced by the pair – receiving a hefty settlement in the process.
Burton’s film tells the story of the Keanes, detailing their ugly divorce and the battle Margaret Keane went through to be rightfully recognized as the true talent in the family. The work will be on display at the museum, 1505 Warburton Ave. in Santa Clara, until the end of the film’s theatrical run.
