What Thomas Kinkade’s Critics May Have Cost Us

My beautiful wife Tonya and I were walking together a few weeks ago and we stopped at an art gallery. Tonya mentioned that she had heard that Thomas Kinkade had recently passed away due to “some weird drug related event”. I said: “Thomas Kinkade~No Way!!”. We moved on to something else, and I didn’t think much more about it because it seemed so far fetched.

A week or so later, I was in our local library writing for my website and for whatever reason the conversation popped into my head. I needed a break anyway, so I googled the situation and what I found astonished me beyond belief. Thomas Kincade did indeed leave us in April 2012 at the age of 54 from an alcohol and drug overdose.

Of course not knowing anything more about Thomas Kinkade than what his amazing work said about him, I had assumed that he was an unbelievably happy, fulfilled, inspired, successful family man centered in religion. Obviously, that wasn’t the whole story. A picture emerged that was rather depressing really. Unfortunately, TK was all of these things at different times. But, at other times his life was not so pretty.

The thing that caught my attention was a comment that his brother Patrick had made. “As much as he said it didn’t bother him, in his heart deep down inside it would sadden him that people would criticize so hatefully his work and his vision when people didn’t understand him.”

Say what? I was blown away!! Thomas Kinkade is far and away my favorite artist and I thought: “What kind of an… (well never mind) would criticize Thomas Kinkade?” Seriously, even if his work isn’t “your style”, hatefully criticize? Really? WOW!!

Okay, so here’s what I think we can learn from this amazingly sad tragedy. If there are people who will “hatefully criticize” Thomas Kinkade’s INCREDIBLY BEAUTIFUL WORK THEN NO MATTER WHAT ANYONE DOES, THERE WILL BE CRITICS. That being the case we are left with only two choices:

1) Do nothing because we will be criticized. Bah Humbug on that!! Or,
2) Realize that “critics” are just part of the system and there are many times more people that can benefit from OUR work the way WE HAVE BENEFITED FROM THOMAS KINKADE’S WORK!!

The only people I’m “critical of” are people who label themselves critics! The process of creating art should never be hindered by someone’s unsolicited opinion. Let ME experience what the artist has to share. I am pretty sure I can judge for myself!!

What REALLY saddens me is that although Thomas Kinkade created at least 1000 pieces of amazing art and touched the world in incredible ways, we will never get to know what other unbelievable expressions of his genius he may have had in store for us had his candle not been snuffed out far too early.

If the critics played any part in Thomas’s untimely demise, then shame on them for stealing from him, from me, and from anyone else who will never have a chance to benefit from a legacy that never happened.

RIP Thomas Kinkade, and thank you for making the world a better place than it would have been without your remarkable presence!!

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Bio:
Corey Jahnke is the author of “We Are Not Here On Rehearsal” and the creator of SuccessEqualsValue.com. Corey is a John C. Maxwell certified success coach AND a Bob Burg certified Go-Giver Coach. Corey’s company, Legend Crafters, helps people go from stuck to unstuck, from unstuck to remarkable and from remarkable to legendary. Will YOU become a legend?

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