The Times correspondent Tom Lounges recently caught up with KISS frontman Paul Stanley to discuss the singer's passion for art. The complete story appears below:

"I'm of the school of thought that everyone should have art in their home. Whether you live in an apartment, a trailer or an estate, art is a really cool thing to have," Paul Stanley said.

For over 30 years, Stanley has been the prancing and dancing lead singer of the self-proclaimed "hottest band in the land" -- KISS.

These days, the 50-something rock star is clearly more excited these days to establish himself as the "hottest brush in the land," by promoting a series of cross-country exhibits at the Wentworth Gallery chain, the exclusive retail outlet for his collection of original paintings.

"Fans need to know that while I love saying 'Hello' to them, this exhibit is not the place for them to be bringing out tour books, photos and albums," stressed Stanley as politely as possible. "This is not a rock concert, it is an art exhibit. I will NOT be signing anything at this appearance. I'm there for my paintings, not my music."

Music seemed quite far from Stanley's mind when he chatted with The Times as well.

"I started painting about seven years ago when I got divorced," Stanley said of what led to his new career as a painter of abstract art. "My friends got tired of me ranting and screaming, and one of them suggested I take up painting, so I did."

What began as a simple means of therapy, has evolved into a second career for the man whose only previous visual creations have been helping to design the classic cover graphics of KISS albums like 'Rock & Roll Over', 'Love Gun' and 'Destroyer'.

"Pretty much as soon as I put a painting up in the house, people kept asking Who did that?' and Where can I get a painting like that?' so I knew I was on to something. It's pretty cool, because I really like that people now are getting to see another side of me, besides just the music," he said.

"When I first started out, I knew that I didn't want to paint a tea cup that looked like a tea cup," he continued. "I do a lot of abstract, because I want people to connect ... and, more importantly, ME to connect with the painting(s) emotionally rather than intellectually. I wanted them to say it made them feel a certain way, rather than say, 'Wow, that tree really looks like a tree.' That's not what I go for when I pick up a brush."

Although he sometimes paints on foam and Masonite boards, "most of the time it's canvas, and the reason I like working with acrylics, is because they dry quickly and you get good textures," Stanley said.

Stanley is a firm believer in the old adage that art is in the eye of the beholder.

"Many people get intimidated by the idea that they need to know a lot about art to know what 'good art' is," Stanley said.

"(That's) ... nonsense. ... Art is a very personal thing and if YOU like a piece of art, then it's 'good art' to YOU, plain and simple."

The paintings are of various sizes and range from several hundred dollars to tens of thousands of dollars.

"I don't know, you can find something there for $900 and you can find something for $60,000," Stanley said when asked to give ballpark figures on how deep a checkbook a person might need to own a Stanley original.