John Kilduff Cat

An artist, television show host and widely recognized online celebrity, California-based American painter John Kilduff is known for his distinctive style, which can be described as a merge of Impressionism and Pop art. His paintings offer a lighthearted and relatable look at contemporary life, and feature everything from beach hats and sneakers to soup cans and beer bottles. 

In 1987, Kilduff earned his BFA from the Otis College of Art and Design in Los Angeles. He also studied comedy at The Groundlings Theatre & School and the Los Angeles City College, in addition to getting his MFA from UCLA in 2008.

Kilduff came into the spotlight in 2001 when he began hosting a cable-access television show called Let's Paint TV, calling himself "Mr. Let's Paint." The show's live episodes typically involve Kilduff painting while he performs other activities, like playing ping pong, running on a treadmill or cooking. In 2006, he began uploading clips of the show to YouTube, which garnered worldwide attention. The series is now broadcast online. 

Kilduff has made numerous other television appearances over the years, including the Tyra Banks Show, where he painted Banks’s portrait live. In 2006, he painted David Hasselhoff on the red carpet of the VH1 Big Awards and also appeared on season two of America's Got Talent.

Ever the entertainer, Kilduff frequently holds in-person painting shows. In 2016, a show called "Bakery" at the Daniel Rolnik Gallery in Santa Monica was designed to mimic the look of a small pastry shop and, as Kilduff created paintings of a range of sweet treats for the event, it earned comparisons to the works of sculptor Claes Oldenburg and Wayne Thiebaud.

Kilduff lives and works in Los Angeles.

On 1stDibs, find original John Kilduff oil paintings, watercolor works and more.

Painting is an art form that has spanned innumerable cultures, with artists using the medium to tell stories, explore and communicate ideas and express themselves. To bring abstract paintings, landscape paintings, still-life paintings and other original paintings into your home is to celebrate and share in the long tradition of this discipline.

When we look at paintings, particularly those that originated in the past, we learn about history, other cultures and countries of the world. Like every other work of art, paintings — whether they are contemporary creations or works that were made during the 19th century — can often help us clearly see and understand the world around us in a meaningful and interesting way.

Cave walls were the canvases for what were arguably the world’s first landscape paintings, which depict natural scenery through art. Portrait paintings and drawings, which, along with sculpture, were how someone’s appearance was recorded prior to the advent of photography, are at least as old as Ancient Egypt. In the Netherlands, landscapes were a major theme for painters as early as the 1500s. Later, artists in Greece, Rome and elsewhere created vast wall paintings to decorate stately homes, churches and tombs.

Today, creating a wall of art is a wonderful way to enhance your space, showcase beautiful pieces and tie an interior design together.

No matter your preference, whether you favor Post-Impressionist paintings, animal paintings, Surrealism, Pop art or another movement or specific period, arranging art on a blank wall allows you to evoke emotions in a room while also showing off your tastes and interests. A symmetrical wall arrangement may comprise a grid of four to six pieces or, for an odd number of works, a horizontal row. Asymmetrical arrangements, which may be small clusters of art or large, salon-style gallery walls, have a more collected and eclectic feel.

Download the 1stDibs app, which includes a handy “View on Wall” feature that allows you to see how a particular artwork will look on a particular wall, and read about how to arrange wall art. And if you’re searching for the perfect palette for your interior design project, what better place to turn than to the art world’s masters of color? 

On 1stDibs, you’ll find an expansive collection of paintings and other fine art for your home or office. Browse abstract paintings, portrait paintings, paintings by emerging artists and more today.