[pollyannaish]

One final thing. I went back and read my posts, just to make sure that I wasn't missing something.

I have said several times on this thread that I respect the fact that people enjoy Kinkade paintings. Not the work, but the fact some people enjoy them. It is respect for what makes others happy, not for the artwork itself. Hey, I respect the fact people love Elvis on velvet. That does not mean I respect "Elvis on Velvet."

Second, just for clarity sake...Art is that which is objectively valuable, while I have used the term "art" in a much more conventional sense. Just wanted to make that clear.

[Rembrandt_fan]

I don't condemn or look down upon those who enjoy or even make, say, Elvis on black velvet. Actually, I kind of like Elvis on black velvet, probably because my mother was crazy about Elvis when I was growing up, and would dance and sing along to Elvis songs on the radio or the record player, so whenever I see one of those kitschy Elvis objects, I think of my mother and get all sorts of warm associations. So I'm not decrying that stuff, far from it. All I'm saying is that it doesn't (or shouldn't) take a graduate degree to recognize good when good is experienced. Lower the bar low enough and people will start thinking gaudy, garish color tricks that were old when the pre-Raphaelites were young is the stuff of genius.

Too late.