John DiPaolo’s abstract works benefit real kids in need

John DiPaolo’s abstract works benefit real kids in need

Each time the Brooklyn-born San Francisco artist sells one of his works, now on exhibit at Dolby Chadwick Gallery, he also funds a Smile Train kid.

“It feels good,” says DiPaolo, 69, scanning the pre- and post-operation pictures lining two walls of his light-filled studio at Hunters Point Shipyard.

[...] he hesitates to spread the word about his good deeds, though those gestures, like other parts of his life, are on full display in his studio, just steps from the bay.

Above the children’s photos are a poetic tribute to his late father and a snapshot of DiPaolo with Robin Williams, for whom he worked for a decade.

Below are models of the classic cars he loves, animal masks that he calls “magical” and stacks of obscure vinyl, including a disc by Vito & the Salutations, his brother Bob’s doo-wop outfit.

“I think music inspires all the other arts because it's so enveloping,” says DiPaolo, who always listens to music while working.