In this Sept. 15, 2006, photo, Thomas Kinkade unveils his painting, “Prayer For Peace,” at the opening of the exhibit “From Abraham to Jesus,” in Atlanta. (Gene Blythe – AP)
Oh, those hypocritical Christians get me everytime;
Thomas Kinkade, the “Painter of Light†whose collectible works were beloved by fans and bemoaned by critics, died of an accidental overdose of alcohol and prescription tranquilizers, officials confirmed to the Associated Press. A combination of Valium and alcohol was the cause of the painter’s April 6 death, the Santa Clara County Medical Examiner-Coroner’s Office said Tuesday.
However, the commercialization and kitsch of his work didn’t win him many fans among the art-world elite, or with critics. As the Style Blog wrote after his death, Kinkade’s legacy was deeply polarizing: For every art critic who called his art saccharine, sentimental or heavy-handed with its Christian imagery, there were a dozen fans who found beauty in his brushstrokes.
Like Redlin, I have often felt that Kinkade was a talented ‘Illustrator’ but not an ‘Artist’ though it seems he liked to drink like one.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n7j2_pmlOPU[/youtube]