Work Text:
Like his more famous brother Thomas, Dolan Kinkade used a silkscreen to mass product basic backgrounds – a church burial yard at sunset or a bog under the full moon – and add finishing touches: a bit of blood red, some phosphorescent green, a splash of baleful yellow.
After that, he would carefully apply a coat of gloss varnish to make the painting glisten.
A coat of varnish, like a winter coat, should protect from the elements. Varnish protects from dust and from fading.
But sometimes, a coat of varnish isn’t intended to keep harmful elements out. It keeps harmful elements in.