Dark Portrait of a 'Painter of Light'

latimes. ^ | March 5, 2006 | Kim Christensen

[beezdotcom]

Visual Muzak. Feh.

Good analogy...I always considered him the "Kenny G" of the art world.

[bonfire]

I was just going to post that even High School or College Art Shows are worth checking out. But then again, my cousin is in an expensive art school and her medium is DRYER LINT~~~ I AM NOT KIDDING!

[Pietro]

Can't say that I've ever been a fan of his, but it just shows that anyone that recognizes God in their life has painted a giant bullseye on their back and should expect the establishment press to place a knife there at the first opportunity.

[bonfire]

Just googled Hogarth.......great artist!

[nuconvert]

LOL

[hellinahandcart]

I think the limited edition artwork business is a gimmick, but what do I know?

Hey, I'll contribute to knowledge pool here. Might save some people a dollar or two.

If the edition size is over 250, the edition is not really "limited" in any meaningful sense.

If the edition is over 1000, you may as well consider it a "limitless edition" as far as resale value goes. The chances of your grandchildren ever reselling it for more than you paid are right around zero, no matter what the salesperson tells you.

Also, anyone who's financially healthy enough to pay $800 for a glorified poster with a signature is in a position to buy originals (which includes real prints from real printmakers. It's not all a gimmick).

[GodBlessRonaldReagan]

And, the Velvet Elvis I almost picked up for a song at a garage sale wouldn't have existed.

I have a Velvet Elvis proudly hanging in my den - purchased for a song at the Souvenirs of Elvis mall across from Graceland. Always gets comments from visitors!

[arizonarachel]

I would recommend, also, Maxfield Parrish's landscapes. They are nice on the computer, but if you can see one in person, it's like the canvas is glowing. I would love to own one. (there is one @ the Phoenix art museum that I have to see every time we're there!)

[Warren_Piece]

Full disclosure: I am one of the undereducated about art that Miss Marple referenced. I am a writer, songwriter, and musician in my "right brain" life.

But I DO know people, and I can tell you that the snobbery is just dripping throughout this thread. There is a scene in the movie BeetleJuice where the new family is moving into the house. Their art-house hanger-on friend looks in a closet and says in his best snob voice, "God save us from L.L. Bean". That's what this thread sounds like.

I don't believe in moral relativism one bit, but I do believe in ARTISTIC relativism. In music, I believe there is beauty in Handel of one sort, in Metallica of another sort, and both speak to people and both are valid. In fact, there is no "invalid" when dealing with the right brain - God made it that way.

[arizonarachel]

*jealous*

I wish I had an ability to draw faces! You're very good. :-)

[Miss Marple]

For interesting representational art with a Christian theme, might I recommend Bob Holloway's pen and ink drawings, which can be seen HERE.

Mr. Holloway comes to the Talbot Street Art Fair in Indianapolis every spring. He is a sweet and gentle man who produces works on a variety of topics. I have a print of his which is one of my favorite things, as it is a Chrismas print of a Salvation Army band (not many people touch that subject these days). Go to his site and look at his current works. They contain actual human figures, subtlety of meaning, and are produced by someone who is truly Christian in his behavior.

[Dante3]

You are right about the drinking.

For some reason, "artist" Carl Andre came to mind who was arrested for the murder of his wife and continued to enjoy the respect of the art "community."

[Miss Marple]

I will never forget when my daughter (a fine artist also but who is in grad school for library sciences) was in art school, they had to make wearable art as a project. The winner in her class was someone who made a necklace out of DEAD BABT MICE encased in cubes of resin. I am not making this up, either. LOL!

[keeper53]

Excellent post. I'm not a Kincade fan, but hey, this attack is over the top. Thanks for some common sense Dan.

keeper
(love pyro blog)

[Miss Marple]

Do I sound snobby? I don't mean to, because I am sincerely trying to help people find out about the variety of art available and not get taken. Lots of people (like my neighbors) have paid way too much for Kincade prints. He sells what the market will bear, of course, but people should be aware there are other choices out there.

What I am trying to say is that the art world is full of more than the anti-Christian stuff and Thomas Kincade. There are OTHER things to buy, and at a reasonable price. Check out art fairs, art colleges, small-town galleries, etc. You might find some beautiful things which are also Christian in theme and you might help some other aspiring artist break into the field.

[hellinahandcart]

If people like the stuff they can buy it. It should be that pure and simple.

But if the customers have been persuaded to pay more than they should because of the "investment potential" of an item that basically has none, deceit has entered the picture and it's no longer a "pure" transaction, is it?

"Caveat enptor" is all well and good, but just because the buyers should have known better doesn't excuse deceit on the part of the seller.

[Muzzle_em]

I'm an artist also.
I hate his work.
They remind me of the "black light" posters which were popular with 13-yr. old girls in the late 70's and early 80's. The only thing missing in each of his paintings is a unicorn.
I read one comment on his paintings which said they depicted what the world would look like if everyone was on Prozac.
I don't deny, however, that he does have a talent.

[PJ-Comix]

The great thing about Hogarth is that you can just keep looking and looking at his art and see things about English society of that era presented in a humorous fashion. He was as unbanal as Kincaid is banal.

[bonfire]

A unicorn!! lol

[Muzzle_em]

I loved to watch him paint!
Don't ever buy any of his signature brushes though.
They suck.
Bristles fall out with every stroke.