HAZEL
GUGGENHEIM
MCKINLEY

Hazel Guggenheim McKinley (April 30, 1903 – June 15, 1995) was an American painter and member of the prominent Guggenheim family. Born in New York City, she later moved to New Orleans and was known for her work in oil, watercolor, and gouache.

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Hazel Guggenheim studied at NYU’s Washington Square College in the early 1920s. By 1922, she moved to Paris to study at the prestigious Sorbonne. Although she was not established as an artist in the 1930s, she began showing her work in various exhibitions.

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Hazel Guggenheim married Sigmund Marshall Kempner on June 2, 1921, but the couple divorced in June 1922. In January 1923, she married Milton S. Waldman in Paris. The couple had two sons, Terence and Benjamin, who tragically died in a rooftop accident in 1928. The tragedy affected Guggenheim deeply, leading to her spending time in a sanitarium. Guggenheim and Milton divorced on February 25, 1930.

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In the 1930s, she married fellow artist Charles McKinley. However, Charles died in a plane accident on November 16, 1942. On September 30, 1943, Guggenheim married Larry Leonard, an Army corporal, in Colorado.

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Guggenheim exhibited her work at Zeitlin Gallery in 1941 and Stendahl Gallery in 1942. She was also included in her sister Peggy’s Exhibition by 31 Women, which featured her artwork "Happy Land" (1942). Although the whereabouts of "Happy Land" are unknown, it is believed to be an oil painting. Guggenheim often gave her artwork ironic names, reflecting a dark sense of humor.

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During World War II, Guggenheim was living in Paris but fled to California as the conflict escalated. She lived in Santa Monica, where Peggy, Peggy's daughter Pegeen, and Max Ernst visited her in 1941.

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Hazel Guggenheim McKinley's artwork remains largely underexplored, overshadowed by her sister Peggy's legacy as an art collector and patron. However, her paintings offer a unique perspective on the artistic milieu of her time. Although information about her personal and artistic life is scarce, Guggenheim’s work in various media and her connections to influential artists and collectors provide glimpses into the complex tapestry of the art world in the first half of the 20th century.