Wednesday 29 October 2014

susie keane’s puppeteens

Via the fantastic Nag-on-the-Lake, reporting for The Guardian, the enquiring Jon Ronson writes how Tim Burton will direct a film about the lives and times of the artists (the true and the plagiarist) behind those insanely popular paintings of slightly forlorn, treacly waifish sad, big eyed children—usually pictured holding equally puppy-eyed familiars. The bio-pic—slated for release in December—was first conceived four years ago and looks to be a pretty fascinating story—with Margaret, the wife of the showman and fraud Walter Keane, getting no credit for her work, based off the marionettes that she designed to teach French to her daughter Susan.  The ruse went on for a decade and spanned the art capitals of Europe and with plenty of celebrity patronage.   We never had any of Keane’s art at home but I certainly do remember seeing some in passing growing up.  Who knew that there was more behind their creation?