This Breathtaking Kitchen Wall Art Trend is Taking Over Social Media

Step aside cornball slogans instructing everyone to “Dance Like No One’s Watching!” (Eyeball roll. You should dance like someone’s watching.) This trend embraces old-world portraits and traditional landscape paintings. It’s true! They look uncannily spectacular in a modern kitchen. Keep flipping to find out what the fuss is about.

Contemporary marble and black kitchen with old portrait painting

Christine Hanlon

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Mysterious Ways

Stylist Christine Hanlon snagged this mysterious portrait while thrifting. It makes a compelling case for using a single old-world art piece to illuminate a contemporary setting. The styling is perfection against ethereal marble in the kitchen by AyA Kitchens.

Traditional farmhouse kitchen showing oil painting on hood cover

Hannah Hamburger

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Character Study

“This wall in our kitchen, with the counter-to-ceiling tile, felt too cold and industrial,” says Hannah Hamburger. “I knew I wanted to add warmth so I used Portola’s Roman Clay Paints to plaster the vent hood and searched for a still life to add life into the space. Hannah sourced the teapot from Everything But The House, and it’s a lovely and unexpected detail that’s carried to the painting of the bouquet of flowers.

Kitchen breakfast nook with gallery artwork

Lauren Miller

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The More the Merrier

Designer Sarah Birnie brought character to her breakfast nook with a gallery wall. The landscape might have been a snooze in a fully traditional home, but looks fresh and new in the bright white kitchen. Note to self: Don’t pass up a fuddy-duddy landscape at a garage sale!

White City Farmhouse

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Natural Selection

Who needs a window overlooking a backyard when you’ve got a sweet little nature painting behind the oven? This treatment by the designer behind White City Farmhouse is fun and surprising. And no tiles harmed in the making of this shot: the painting is held up by 3M adhesive strips.

Brick-walled kitchen with little painting

www.photographieinterieure.co

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Solo Stunner

In this exceptional kitchen by Montreal’s Blanc Marine Living, a high-collared gentleman framed in gold is given prominence with his own library light. Designers Melanie Cherrier and Laurence Pons always incorporate heritage elements in their design to beautiful effect. We especially love the textural punch of the marble, brick and wood.

Chantelle Watt

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Mini Paintings, Big Impact

Designer Thalita Murray of The Learner Observer is winning at the shelfie game. This carefully composed vignette sees two landscapes – one on the shelf, and the other on the counter – bring an unexpected charm to the kitchen. Just goes to show gran’s old treasures don’t have to sit in a dusty box in the attic.

Cynthia Zamaria

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Ravishing Retro

The element of surprise and contrast in this vintage-styled kitchen by floral designer Cynthia Zamaria works beautifully. It’s business below – plates, glasses, bowls – and fun above, with the addition of the two old paintings that feel right at home against the heritage brick.

deVol Kitchens

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Kitchen as Art Gallery

Part art gallery, part kitchen, this enchanting scene is by the UK’s deVol Kitchens. It showcases the power of old portraiture and paintings in general – a shelf with a railing keeps the pieces safe from falling and can be switched out at whim. Other details that kill it in the shaker kitchen: the contrast of thickly veined marble against deep hunter green.

Old-world painting on brick wall in kitchen

Susan Burns Designs

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Soulful Style

A mournful girl in old-world dress pulls in the eye in this lovely kitchen by interior designer Susan Burns. Don’t underestimate negative space: let the painting enjoy a solitary turn in the spotlight. The painting looks perfectly at home over the white-painted brick wall. A vase of flowers and a basket of oversize antique cutting boards are charming flourishes, too.

Kitchen shelf with glassware and a painting

Susan Burns Designs

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Lean Scene

In this kitchen vignette by interior designer Susan Burns, a stern gent looks right at home casually propped among glassware. Unsure about how to incorporate paintings? Slip them into empty spaces that could use warming up.

Leaning painting of flowers beside a fridge in a kitchen

Alex Arnott

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Fresh Find

Take a page from interior designer Alex Arnott and don’t overthink it. The designer brightened up this kitchen corner simply by adding a leaning and colourful floral painting.