You wrote, "I doubt there is one serious art snob who has anything but total derision for his work."
True, and I'm one of them. I do, however, admire his marketing savvy and his undeniable flair for self-promotion. He's sort of a hybrid between Norman Rockwell and Andy Warhol (both of whom I like, by the way, weird as that sounds).
The FBI can investigate all they want, but Kincaid will ultimately win, either in a criminal case or a civil suit, or both. Any jury will come to the conclusion that people who open a store in a retail gallery showing only the work of one artist are inviting disaster.
Interesting comparison and I think you are accurate re: marketing saavy. But I find both Rockwell and Warhol more interesting subject-wise and better interpreters of their contemporary cultures. I wonder if Kinkade will connect that deeply and that broadly in the long run.
That is a rare combination. But, despite the opinion many art critics held of his work, Norman Rockwell was a master of what he did. Kinkade is a master at marketing, and has made millions off it, but his work won't be celebrated years after his death the way Rockwell's is.
"He's sort of a hybrid between Norman Rockwell and Andy Warhol (both of whom I like, by the way, weird as that sounds)."
I used to work with a guy who was an obnoxious amateur art critic. The words "Norman Rockwell" would almost send him into apoplectic fits. Once people found out how easy it was to tweak him he was one miserable dude.