The Kaplan Twins
New Jersey-born Allie and Lexi Kaplan are provocative LA-based painters and internet stars who take full advantage of their twinship to grow their personality-fueled, celebrity-riddled, influencer-cum-artist careers.
Photo by Emily Knecht for Coveteur
Image via Montauk Beach House
Allie and Lexi first splashed onto the art scene in their early 20s by painting stills from celebrity sex tapes from the likes of Paris Hilton and Kim Kardashian. The NYU fine art graduates initially received backlash for painting “porn.” The Kaplans find this conversation to be minimally stimulating (pun intended), and have instead embraced the controversy. On their website, the Kaplans’ bio declares they “are not as straightforward as they may initially appear.” Over time the Kaplans have found their audience that loves them and their work—and they love them right back.
Why paint in oil, a traditionally slow and labored medium? As reported to Jodi Taylor in Coveteur, Allie noted that the twins thought “it’d be interesting and funny to make a series of traditional oil paintings, of something that’s very non-traditional—something that’s controversial and mainstream celebrity culture.” In the same interview, Lexi attested they make “‘modern-day renaissance paintings…in the formal oil painting context.’”
The Kaplans’ artwork cannot be separated from Allie and Lexi’s personal image, putting them in the category of “internet artists.” The twins play Instagram and TikTok like a game at expert-level. They work the numbers, adjusting their posts (and transversely, their paintings) to game their engagement rates. Allie and Lexi are frequently photographed during studio visits. Nearly 100% of the time they can be found painting in their underwear or sports bras—cleverly planting potential opportunities for sponsorship by major bra-makers. The sisters are naturals with the camera, going so far photographing themselves (suggestively) sleeping with toys and selling them to their followers in a series named “Boy Toys.”
Photo by Nem Perez & Susa Jean via The Future Party
Homepage thumbnail image via Kaplans’ Instagram
More Kaplan Twins
The Kaplan Twins website
The Kaplan Twins Instagram
The Kaplan Twins TikTok
Inst@famous, Netflix, Season 1, Episode 8 @the_kaplan_twins
Ex on the Beach, MTV, Season 3 (cast includes The Kaplans)
Kinda Dating podcast, #99 “Be Unique, Get Noticed! (With the Kaplan Twins)”
Gemzeez, Kaplans’ side business of temporary tooth gem kits
The Twin Sisters Creating NSFW Oil Paintings, Jodi Taylor for Coveteur