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"Painter of Light" Thomas Kincade dies at 54
CBS ^ | 4/7/2012

Posted on 04/07/2012 7:39:53 AM PDT by KansasGirl

(CBS/AP) One of the most successful artists of all time, prolific painter Thomas Kinkade - the self-described "Painter of Light" - died Friday at the age of 54.

A spokesperson for the Kinkade family said the artist died at home in Los Gatos, Calif., apparently of natural causes.

Kinkade's paintings were anything but controversial, depicting scenes of a light-filled America with a heavy emphasis on home, hearth and church. His sentimental scenes of country gardens and pastoral landscapes in dewy morning light were beloved by many but criticized by the art establishment.

The painter once said that he had something in common with Walt Disney and Norman Rockwell: He wanted to make people happy.

Those light-infused renderings are often prominently displayed in buildings, malls, and on products — generally depicting tranquil scenes with lush landscaping and streams running nearby. Many contain images from Bible passages.

"I'm a warrior for light," Kinkade, a self-described devout Christian, told the San Jose Mercury News in 2002, a reference to 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."

And he had a large following: Kinkade's 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.


TOPICS: News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: art; painteroflight; thomaskinkade
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To: KansasGirl
As we celebrate Easter I must post the finest piece of art depicting the last supper. Superior in every way to anything little Tommie Kinkade ever did.


101 posted on 04/07/2012 1:54:52 PM PDT by Utah Binger (Southern Utah where the world comes to see America)
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To: Finny
Few of my professional artist acquaintances like Kinkade's work, either, BUT EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THEM understands that Kinkade had a helluva lot more than simply "a knack for handling light." As for considering his work "vulgar," a person who would call it such is either an extraordinarily brilliantly skilled Michaelangelo/DaVinci in one, OR an art snob who couldn't paint his way out of a paper bag.

I also thought his art was kitschy, but for me it was because most of it didn't make any sense. Who paints a house in daylight with all the lights on and a fire burning? To me it was just silly. But to each their own. I certainly didn't wish any harm on the guy. My condolences to his fans.

102 posted on 04/07/2012 2:09:30 PM PDT by Oshkalaboomboom
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To: sheikdetailfeather

I liked some of his winter scenes since the colors were more muted.


103 posted on 04/07/2012 2:29:04 PM PDT by Girlene
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To: prisoner6
We are complicated creations, LOL!

God bless us for our diversities (the good ones, that is).
104 posted on 04/07/2012 2:34:30 PM PDT by Thorliveshere
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To: KansasGirl

The art critics ripped on Bob Ross, too. I loved his “happy little trees.”


105 posted on 04/07/2012 2:36:22 PM PDT by DemforBush (A Repo man is *always* intense!)
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To: Finny

Thank you very much! You made my day!


106 posted on 04/07/2012 3:35:37 PM PDT by CAluvdubya (Have a Blessed Good Friday)
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To: A'elian' nation
> Do you have any advice or experience with back-lit photography?

Yes. I've got one of those frames, just can't remember the name of it right now. Will try to find it and get back to you later tonight or tomorrow.

To just back-light one part of a picture like a starry sky you will have to put an opaque mask behind the parts you don't want back-lit. Not hard to do.

107 posted on 04/07/2012 3:53:33 PM PDT by ADemocratNoMore (Jeepers, Freepers, where'd 'ya get those sleepers?. Pj people, exposing old media's lies.)
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To: prisoner6

Looks like a cool link! Thanks!


108 posted on 04/07/2012 4:15:36 PM PDT by Finny ("Raise hell. Vote smart." -- Ted Nugent (By the way, Ted, voting for Romney is voting stupid.))
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To: GVnana
A sample of The Holy Lands series:


Photobucket

Photobucket

Photobucket

Photobucket
If those aren't beautiful to you, there's something wrong with you.

109 posted on 04/07/2012 4:37:47 PM PDT by GVnana (Newt 2012 - He Speaks for Us)
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To: left that other site
I was looking at the paintings that were posted here. They are beautiful. To my eyes, they are an effective reminder of innocence -- even if that leaves us bittersweet these days, it surely prevents us from falling for the lie that innocence never was.

And that inevitably, if one follows it doggedly and truthfully, leads to Hope.

110 posted on 04/07/2012 4:48:30 PM PDT by the invisib1e hand (I think in about 5 - no, 4 - years I'll have had enough.)
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To: prisoner6

I know somebody who has a Picasso sketch hanging on the inside of a closet door. Yes, really. It’s a hoot.


111 posted on 04/07/2012 4:49:40 PM PDT by the invisib1e hand (I think in about 5 - no, 4 - years I'll have had enough.)
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Comment #112 Removed by Moderator

To: All
A sample of the Great Outdoors Series:

Photobucket
Photobucket
Photobucket
Photobucket
Photobucket

113 posted on 04/07/2012 4:54:24 PM PDT by GVnana (Newt 2012 - He Speaks for Us)
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To: KansasGirl
I will always regret not buying the black velvet painting of an 18 wheeler with bitty little REAL ELECTRIC LIGHTS everyplace a truck would have them at a truckstop in Wisconsin in 1980 or thereabouts.

Yes, it was kitsch, Magnificent Kitsch.
114 posted on 04/07/2012 5:30:00 PM PDT by Nepeta
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To: the invisib1e hand

My dad died of cancer, at home, at 52.


115 posted on 04/07/2012 5:33:38 PM PDT by netmilsmom (I am Breitbart)
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To: the invisib1e hand

I agree with you.

As a Graphic Artist who attended Art School in the 70’s, I was trained to DESPISE this type of Art as “mawkishly Sentimental Kisch”. Yet, after seeing what has been foisted upon the public as “Art” for the last 100 years (Abstract Expressionism, Dada, Minimalist, Nihilist, Depressing, Mean Spirited CRAP), I feel drawn to that which lifts the Human Spirit. The Art and Music of the Renaissance, The Enlightenment, and Even the Impressionist Eras Celebrate Both Beauty and Truth, and I believe that Mr. Kincaid, in his own way, sought after that goal as well.

Innocence is a “Good” thing! :-)


116 posted on 04/07/2012 5:34:52 PM PDT by left that other site
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To: left that other site

-—As a Graphic Artist who attended Art School in the 70’s, I was trained to DESPISE this type of Art as “mawkishly Sentimental Kisch”. Yet, after seeing what has been foisted upon the public as “Art” for the last 100 years (Abstract Expressionism, Dada, Minimalist, Nihilist, Depressing, Mean Spirited CRAP), I feel drawn to that which lifts the Human Spirit. The Art and Music of the Renaissance, The Enlightenment, and Even the Impressionist Eras Celebrate Both Beauty and Truth, and I believe that Mr. Kincaid, in his own way, sought after that goal as well.-—

Bravo! I’m an illustrator, and I agree completely.


117 posted on 04/07/2012 5:38:21 PM PDT by St_Thomas_Aquinas (Viva Christo Rey!)
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To: hoosiermama

But also...

In 2002, he partnered with The Salvation Army to create two charity prints, The Season of Giving and The Light of Freedom. Proceeds from the sale of the prints were donated to The Salvation Army for their relief efforts at Ground Zero and to aid the victims of the September 11 attacks and their families in New York, Pennsylvania, and Washington D.C. More than $2 million was donated as a result of this affiliation. In 2003, Kinkade was chosen as a National Spokesman for the Make-A-Wish Foundation, and during the 20 Years of Light Tour in 2004, he raised over $750,000 and granted 12 wishes for children with life-threatening medical conditions.

In 2005, the Points of Light Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to engaging more people more effectively in volunteer service to help solve serious social problems, named Kinkade as Ambassador of Light. He was the second person in the Foundation’s 15-year history to be chosen as Ambassador, the first being the organization’s founder, former U.S. President George H. W. Bush.[26] During his Ambassador of Light Tour, Kinkade visited cities nationwide to raise awareness and money for the Points of Light Foundation and the Volunteer Center National Network, which serves more than 360 Points of Light member Volunteer Centers in communities across the country.

I hope that when I go, I am not judged solely on my demons but also my good works as well.


118 posted on 04/07/2012 5:39:47 PM PDT by netmilsmom (I am Breitbart)
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Comment #119 Removed by Moderator

To: Ditter

Kinkade never knew when to stop. Always room for another glop of paint.


120 posted on 04/07/2012 5:55:49 PM PDT by DariusBane (People are like sheep and have two speeds: grazing and stampede)
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