We celebrate the religious aesthetic—and mourn the loss—of Precious Moments creator Sam Butcher. A pastel-colored, Christian-infused aesthetic embodied by Precious Moments may of course prompt a reaction: like the “Precious Mutation” of Keith Busher. Did evangelical art (and theology) ever grow up?

How can this couple have been married 25 years when they are children: https://www.preciousmoments.com/twenty-five-happy-years-together-figurine

Jesus said: “wise as a serpent, gentle as a dove”: https://www.biblegateway.com/verse/en/Matthew%2010%3A16

Daniel Silliman obituary of Sam Butcher: https://www.christianitytoday.com/2024/05/sam-butcher-precious-moments-art-artist-chapel-obit/

The Sam Butcher story on the Precious Moments website: https://www.preciousmoments.com/butcher-story/

Keith Busher, the “Precious Mutator” (Instagram): https://www.instagram.com/preciousmutator/?hl=en; (Etsy): https://www.etsy.com/shop/PreciousMutations

Precious Mutations story: https://www.today.com/home/precious-mutants-are-terrifying-version-precious-moments-figurines-t161577 

Thomas Kincaid, “The Painter of Light”: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Kinkade

The “Precious Moments Chapel” mural: https://www.preciousmoments.com/blog/history-of-precious-moments-chapel-hallelujah-square

Later Sam Butcher paintings of nude bodies: https://x.com/danielsilliman/status/1795890318853767351

Garbage Pail Kids example: https://media.cnn.com/api/v1/images/stellar/prod/120329100954-garbage-pail-kids-leaky-lindsay.jpg?q=w_1248,h_1732,x_0,y_0,c_fill