Thomas Kinkade - "Painter of Light" - Dies

AP ^ | 4/7/12 | John S. Marshall

[boatbums]

California artist Thomas Kinkade, whose brushwork paintings of idyllic landscapes, cottages and churches were big sellers for dealers across the country, died Friday, a family spokesman said.

Kinkade, 54, died at his home in Los Gatos in the San Francisco Bay Area of what appeared to be natural causes, David Satterfield said.

Kinkade's sentimental paintings, with their scenes of cottages, country gardens and churches in dewy morning light, were beloved by middlebrow America but reviled by the art establishment.

The paintings generally depict tranquil scenes with lush landscaping and streams running nearby. Many contain images from Bible passages.

Kinkade, a self-described devout Christian, claimed to be the nation's most collected living artist. His paintings and spin-off products were said to fetch some $100 million a year in sales, and to be in 10 million homes in the United States.

"I'm a warrior for light," he told the San Jose Mercury News in 2002, in reference to his technical skills but also the medieval practice of using light to symbolize the divine. "With whatever talent and resources I have, I'm trying to bring light to penetrate the darkness many people feel."

[Alice in Wonderland]

Kinkade's sentimental paintings, with their scenes of cottages, country gardens and churches in dewy morning light, were beloved by middlebrow America but reviled by the art establishment...Many contain images from Bible passages.

Hated by the 'art establishment' because of his technique or because Thomas was a Christian? Which is it, ASSociated Press?

Prayers for his family. He was truly gifted. Always loved his Christmas themed paintings such as this:

His paintings were nice ... like a modern-day Currier and Ives.

[lupie]

Heaven NEEDED a good “A”rtist???? I don’t think so. Heaven is the abode of the everlasting, eternal, self-sufficient, triune Creator and sustanier of the universe whose glory is far more than we can handle in these bodies. Heaven is filled to the brim with His Glory and does not need anything man to add anything to Who He is or What He has done. There is only one true “Artist”, and that is God Himself. Kincaid was just a sinner. We hope that he was saved by grace. If not, it is too late. If so, then now he knows what true “art” is. Jesus Christ is true beauty.

[ctdonath2]

Reviled why? Marketing, I imagine. Seems he made a few nice pictures, then marketed the **** out of them. Like Disney, persuaded customers to buy references to sentimental stories.

[quintr]

Kincade dies

[Babba Gi]

Prices are being marked up at garage sales all over the south. It’s schlock art best viewed while eating a “Happy Meal.” This fine art is best hung between the Billy-Bass and the Jackalope.

[WashingtonSource]

I disagree. They are sentimental, but they are good art. The sophisticates hate sentimentality. They also hate Christians. Ergo, their disdain. This is not “velvet Elvis.” This is more of a classic style that will survive the ages.

And why the gratuitous slap at the South? These paintings are equally popular in every part of the nation, Canada, and all over the world.

Have you ever been to a sidewalk art show in New York? Talk about shlock!

[patriot08]

That’s so sad.
Rip, Mr. Kinkade.

[Twinkie]

There are always two sides to every story; and Christ is ultimately the judge we’ll all have to face.

[tanknetter]

They are sentimental, but they are good art.

Respectfully, he couldn't hold a candle to Paul Landry or William S. Phillips. Two of my favorite paintings are Landry's "It's A Wonderful Christmas" and Phillips' "Cape Neddick Dawn". See below:

[mkleesma]

“They forgot to mention that besides his beautiful paintings, Mr. Kinkade was also the manager of the Patridge family.”

Thanks - you made me squirt coffee out of my nose!

[DariusBane]

Thus said Fraiser Crane, while Niles leans against a wall gasping for breath! Yes I agree. I always hated that it was required that I love his work. Every christian family had one. “if Kincaid is good enough for Jesus, he is good enough for me!”

[sphinx]

Ditto. I always thought of Kinkade as a talented illustrator. Norman Rockwell is a good comparison. The fact that he was reviled by the art establishment is a point in his favor. Kinkade's stuff is not my cup of tea -- a little too sentimental -- but it is at least pretty, which is better than a lot of what populates museums and exhibitions these days.

People collect poster art, some of which commands a pretty hefty premium. Nothing wrong with that. I suspect a lot of the hostility to Kinkade stems from the fact that he was so openly commercial, and made money.

[Notary Sojac]

beloved by middlebrow America

I dunno. I like NASCAR, bluegrass music, grilling a big ol' T-bone over charcoal, and driving ATV's all round my mountain property.

But I have Lautrec and Magritte prints on my office and living room wall, and yeah, I'd be embarrassed to put a Kinkade up next to them.

It's almost like taste is a personal thing or sumpin....

[aruanan]

I disagree. They are sentimental, but they are good art. The sophisticates hate sentimentality. They also hate Christians. Ergo, their disdain. This is not “velvet Elvis.” This is more of a classic style that will survive the ages.

You've already fallen into the trap: "It's not because I'm rude, disdainful, dishonest, lazy, less-than-competent, stupid, or unimaginative. You're not giving me the promotion/you don't like me/you hate me/you're rejecting my application/you're failing my job interview/you're giving me a bad grade on my test because I'm black/gay/Hispanic/fat/female/Rosicrucian/tattooed/old/young/male."

A large portion of the greatest Western art of the past 2000 years features Christian themes. The artistic merit of these works is not despised because of the subject matter. And they are not taken to be great art because of their subject matter.

The reason a lot of people who know art dislike most of Kinkade's work of the past 30 years is not because he's Christian but because, technically, it's crap. He's found one trait (the light) that's necessary among many, many others for a painting to be good and has used it as a substitute for everything else. It would be like a pianist eschewing everything else in the technical repertoire but the trill, "He's a wonderful artist! Have you ever heard anyone do a trill like that!" "But that's all he does! Everything else is degraded or missing." "You're just saying that because he's a Christian!"

A "classic style" may survive the ages, but Kinkade's enduring claim to fame will be his abuse of this style.

[SunkenCiv]

Thanks, a couple of his better ones.

[SunkenCiv]

Whoops. Thanks tanknetter, “Cape Neddick” looked uncharacteristic of Kincade’s, I just didn’t read carefully.

[Alice in Wonderland]

I love, LOVE, LOVE 'Cape Neddick Dawn'.

[combat_boots]

This one’s big. Look at the sticker the woman is wearing.
http://www.defense.gov/DODCMSShare/NewsStoryPhoto/2005-10/20051021164934_kinkade.jpg

If people haven’t been able to see a Kinkade original, please see if you can. Yes, many of us have prints or other sundries, but the real McCoys really are something to see. There’s an archive in Monterey.

[combat_boots]

[ThisLittleLightofMine]

Amen!