Dimebag death artist speaks out
Artist Tom Sanford, who painted a picture depicting the on-stage shooting of ex-Pantera guitarist Dimebag Darrell, has spoken out about the heavy criticism he’s taken for his work.
Dimebag was playing in Ohio with Damageplan on December 8, 2004, when crazed US Marine Nathan Gale opened fire, killing the star and three others before being shot dead by police.
A few months later Sanford revealed his painting of the event, leading to outbursts or hate mail and death threats. The work is up for sale for the second time this weekend, leading to an upsurge in fury from Dimebag fans.
Now Sanford has spoken out about his motives. In a bloghe says: “Most of the emails were cursing me out while accusing me of crimes ranging from poor taste to exploiting the death of Dimebag. I guess I’m guilty of both.
“When I made the painting the reaction of Dimebag’s fans wasn’t on my mind. I was interested in this tragedy as a historical event. Normally the industry is able to define newsworthy events with an image or video. In our media-saturated world it was without a defining image.
“I thought it was a significant event that needed to be remembered, and I thought my painting might help. It’s certainly in poor taste but when someone is describing a mass-murder etiquette is not an issue.”
Sanford goes on to point out that Dimebag’s guitar had an American rebel flag painted on it, which could be seen to represent a pro-slavery stance, and therefore the guitarist himself wasn’t too concerned with being polite all the time. He says: “I hope I would be allowed a similar leeway as a fellow artist. Neither paintings nor flags kill people – crazy f’ks like Nathan Gale do.”
Discussing the wide range of violent imagery in heavy metal art, he adds: “Many albums depict images of war, rape and murder. When people complain I would be the first to tell them to shove it. I didn’t mean this painting to be offensive but I’m not sorry if it is.
“That’s not to say I don’t empathise with Dimebag’s family and friends and all the victims. Their loss must have been horrible beyond anything I can comprehend. But art’s job is not to be polite.”
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