GENE SIMMONS On Taking Up Painting - "I Didn't Know You Were Supposed To Have A Style; The Art Is More Stream Of Consciousness"
October 24, 2021, 3 years ago
KISS icon / bassist / vocalist Gene Simmons recently spoke with People about his ventures as a painte. It is a hobby that brought him to Animazing Gallery at The Venetian Resort in Las Vegas on October 21st where he sold some of his pieces for prices ranging from $1,000 to $250,000. Following is an excerpt from the story.
Gene Simmons is surrounded by about 50 paintings and sketches — all of which he created himself — when he admits, "I don't know what I'm doing."
The KISS frontman took up painting during the pandemic as a way to keep his mind occupied, but he never thought anyone would actually be interested in buying his works. But here he is watching people spend tens of thousands of dollars for his artwork hanging at a Las Vegas art gallery inside the Venetian.
"I didn't even know you're supposed to name the paintings," he shrugged. "I never considered myself a painter. I never considered myself much of anything. You're talking to the least qualified person you'd ever meet... I can tell you that I have a sense of wonder."
That mentality was a reason why he locked himself in an industrial park in Whistler, Canada, in 2020 and began painting.
"I just wanted to stay sane," he tells People. "I didn't know you were supposed to have a style, and I didn't do anything except try to keep my mind busy. So the art is more stream of consciousness."
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