Tips on Hanging Art
Introducing new art to your surroundings? Here are a few things you should consider.
Selecting art for your home or office is an exciting venture bringing enjoyment to your surroundings for years to come. Buying what catches your eye fills the senses but is it love at first sight or just a little crush? Will the new art fit into your environment seamlessly?
Choosing a piece for a specific room is about more than just buying, driving it home and hanging it on a wall. Aesthetics and practicality play two distinctive roles and the bottom line is, you want it to look good.
The ‘try before you buy’ strategy allows you to give art a test drive, see where it fits best for optimal attention. When trying out a new piece, try placing it in different places within your home or office. Try various walls and heights, you don’t want it to look out of place or awkward. If you feel strongly about a particular work of art, this is certainly a great step to take.
Sometimes new art may even inspire a quick refresh in a particular room giving the whole package that extra zing and often this can be as simple as moving or changing lighting. Also, art that is too large will overwhelm and art that is too small will be lost and look out of proportion.
As a rule, paintings should be hung so that the center of the painting is at eye level. A sculpture may sit on the floor, a table, or pedestal, depending on the design. Keep in mind, these are only guidelines so if you were that kid in class who threw caution to the wind and preferred the punk rock version of ‘I did it my way’ to Frank Sinatra’s, you’ll be tossing these rules out the door.
The key is to experiment and do what works best for you. Style should definitely be taken into consideration but don’t get stuck on what’s right and what’s wrong. Who said throwing in a more modern/contemporary piece into a room full of antiques wouldn’t work? Again, the key is experimentation. Snap a few pictures, maybe show them around to friends and see what they have to say. But don’t forget, these are your surroundings so do whatever it takes to get the result you’re after.