SAN JOSE, Calif., Aug. 29 (UPI) -- Gallery owners who have severed ties with U.S. "Painter of Light" artist Thomas Kinkade claim the FBI is probing his marketing practices.
Two former dealers told The Los Angeles Times they had been asked to provide documentation of their business dealings with Kinkade's company by FBI agents.
However, company spokesman Jim Bryant said from the Morgan Hill, Calif., company's headquarters he was unaware of a criminal investigation and said he had not been contacted by the FBI or federal prosecutors.
At least six former Thomas Kinkade Signature Gallery owners have launched civil lawsuits claiming after they had invested tens of thousands of dollars each, the company's practices and policies drove them out of business. They claimed they were stuck with unsellable limited-edition prints, forced to open additional stores in saturated markets and undercut by discounters with prices they were forbidden to match.
The FBI would neither confirm nor deny an investigation into Kinkade, who is likely the most widely collected living U.S. artist, the Times said.
