Distasteful

RALEIGH, N.C. - A North Carolina artist intrigued by the public
obsession with celebrity has found herself feeding that obsession with a
painting of actress Angelina Jolie as the Virgin Mary hovering over a Wal-Mart check-out line.

Kate Kretz has painted for 20 years but none
of her previous work has garnered the attention given "Blessed Art Thou,"
showing this weekend at Art Miami, an annual exposition of modern and
contemporary art.

The painting -- acrylic and oil on linen -- depicts an
angelic Jolie in the clouds, holding her newborn daughter, Shiloh, with children
Maddox and Zahara at her legs. Below them is a Wal-Mart checkout
line. The painting is for sale for $50,000 through Chelsea Galleria in Miami,
which represents Kretz

.

What was this artist thinking? What was Wal-Mart thinking! When I look at the mural it shows to me a total lack of disrespect towards The Holy Mother. Is this what the Catholic religion been reduced to, to have an interpretation of Our LadY hovering over check out? I hope not . I don't care how long the woman has been painting or how good she thinks she is she needs to give the sale of this art work towards a Catholic Mission. Then she needs to public apologize to whom she has offended (Catholics).