Laser Cat: A Closer Look at the Artwork

October 17, 2026

Most of the art we make is serious in mood: night cities, deep space, misty forests. Laser Cat is not. It is a picture of a very fluffy cat firing lasers from its eyes, and it is meant to make you smile. It is also a well-made picture, with a soft palette that is easy to live with. This post looks at both sides.

What is in the picture

A long-haired cat sits facing us and fills the frame. Its coat is white, with black patches across the top of the head, over one ear and down one shoulder. The fur is thick and soft, standing out round the face and chest. There is a small dark nose and a straight, unimpressed mouth.

Where the eyes should be, there is light. Two pale beams come from the eyes and run straight down the picture, past the chin and the chest, and out of the bottom edge. They are white at the centre with a thin edge of blue-violet. The cat's expression is hidden behind them, which is part of the joke. It sits perfectly still and composed while this happens.

The background is a flat, soft green, somewhere between mint and sea-foam. The white fur picks up a little of the same green in its shadows. There is nothing else in the picture.

Laser Cat canvas wall art by Kiyo Arts, a fluffy black and white cat with beams of light from its eyes on a mint background — Laser Cat on canvas.

One note for anyone choosing by the product title: some of our listings for this piece mention space or a galaxy. The picture has no space in it. It is a cat on a plain green ground.

Where the joke comes from

Cats and lasers have gone together online for a long time. There are three strands.

The laser pointer. Every cat owner knows the red dot. Cats chase it without tiring. So cats and lasers were already linked in people's minds.
The laser eyes. Beams from the eyes are a superhero power. Giving that power to a house cat is funny, because a cat already behaves as though it has it.
The school photo. In the 1980s and 1990s, portrait studios offered a backdrop of crossing laser beams. It was meant to look futuristic. Years later, people began adding cats to those backdrops, and the laser cat portrait became a running joke.

Cats were among the first stars of the internet, and they still are. A cat picture with a silly idea in it is part of a long and affectionate tradition. See art for cat people.

Why it works as a picture

Funny art is easy to do badly. This piece holds up for a few reasons.

The cat is played straight. It is a calm, dignified portrait. The humour comes from the contrast between that dignity and what the eyes are doing.
The palette is gentle. Mint green, white and black, with a trace of violet. It is a soft, fresh set of colours, and it looks good in a room quite apart from the joke.
It is simple. One subject, a plain ground, a clear idea. It reads at once from across a room.
The vertical beams. They give the picture a strong up-and-down line, which suits the portrait shape and draws the eye through it.
The texture. The soft fur against the flat background, and the hard, straight beams against the soft fur.

The mood

Deadpan. It is funny in a quiet way. It doesn't shout, and that is why it stays funny after the first look.

Where it works

A home office. Something to lighten a working day. It suits the wall you see on a break, or the wall behind you on video calls, where it is a good talking point.
A hallway or landing. A place where a guest will come across it by surprise.
A bathroom or cloakroom. The traditional home of funny pictures. Choose a framed print if the room gets steamy, and make sure it is ventilated.
A kitchen. Mint green suits a kitchen well.
A teenager's room or a student room.
A games room. See game room and den wall art.
Anywhere a cat lives.

It suits white, pale grey, sage and other soft green walls. See wall art for blue and green walls. It is a light picture, so it works in rooms where a dark piece would feel heavy.

How to hang a funny picture

Treat it seriously. A joke in a good frame, hung straight at the proper height, is funnier than one taped to the wall. The contrast between the smart presentation and the silly subject is the point.
One per room. A room full of funny pictures is trying too hard. One is a surprise.
Put it among serious ones. In a gallery wall of landscapes and abstracts, a cat with laser eyes is the piece people notice.
Choose where it surprises. The best spot is one where a visitor finds it a moment after entering.

What to pair it with

Other cats. Lofi Cat Meow, a pink cat in sunglasses on a teal and pink ground, shares its humour and its green-blue tones. Cool Grey Tabby, a tabby in a hat and coat on denim blue, is another straight-faced portrait.
Something calm. A soft landscape such as Blue Mountain Fog, whose teal sits well beside the mint.
In the room: white, pale wood, plants, and one or two things in soft green.

The formats

Canvas. Portrait, from 11 × 14 to 40 × 60 inches. A small or medium size suits the piece. A very large one is a bold choice.
Framed poster. In black or white. The frame gives it the mock-formal look that suits the joke. White keeps it fresh. Black makes it more graphic. See black frame or white frame.
Pin. For a bag or a jacket. See how to style pins.

As a gift

This is one of the easiest pieces in our range to give. It suits:

anyone with a cat, and especially a long-haired black-and-white one
a colleague, for a desk or an office wall
a housewarming, where it breaks the ice
a white elephant or Secret Santa exchange. The pin is about $6. See gifts under $20.

Each piece is made to order, so allow 2 to 7 business days for production and 3 to 7 for US delivery.