Art is a form of self-expression and a representation of yourself in your space — it adds a layer of personalization and individuality to an otherwise empty room. When sourcing art, think about what drew you to those pieces. It will probably tell more of a story about you than you’d think! Artwork can also serve as a room's focal point or conversation starter. You better believe we’ll start a conversation over that coveted Michael McGregor beauty hanging above your sofa or that teeny tiny portrait leaning against your bookshelf!
Getting back to the crux of this chapter, though: The truth is, there is no right or wrong way to style art. And that’s what makes it so beautiful. Art (like many things in design) is subjective. What works for you might not work for your friend.
As you go through this chapter, know that while we’ll cover art styling tips and tricks generally taught in the design industry, rules are made to be broken. Feel free to adapt anything you see here to whatever your heart desires!
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Art is a form of self-expression and a representation of yourself in your space — it adds a layer of personalization and individuality to an otherwise empty room. When sourcing art, think about what drew you to those pieces. It will probably tell more of a story about you than you’d think! Artwork can also serve as a room's focal point or conversation starter. You better believe we’ll start a conversation over that coveted Michael McGregor beauty hanging above your sofa or that teeny tiny portrait leaning against your bookshelf!
Getting back to the crux of this chapter, though: The truth is, there is no right or wrong way to style art. And that’s what makes it so beautiful. Art (like many things in design) is subjective. What works for you might not work for your friend.
As you go through this chapter, know that while we’ll cover art styling tips and tricks generally taught in the design industry, rules are made to be broken. Feel free to adapt anything you see here to whatever your heart desires!
Art is a form of self-expression and a representation of yourself in your space — it adds a layer of personalization and individuality to an otherwise empty room. When sourcing art, think about what drew you to those pieces. It will probably tell more of a story about you than you’d think! Artwork can also serve as a room's focal point or conversation starter. You better believe we’ll start a conversation over that coveted Michael McGregor beauty hanging above your sofa or that teeny tiny portrait leaning against your bookshelf!
Getting back to the crux of this chapter, though: The truth is, there is no right or wrong way to style art. And that’s what makes it so beautiful. Art (like many things in design) is subjective. What works for you might not work for your friend.
As you go through this chapter, know that while we’ll cover art styling tips and tricks generally taught in the design industry, rules are made to be broken. Feel free to adapt anything you see here to whatever your heart desires!
Art is a form of self-expression and a representation of yourself in your space — it adds a layer of personalization and individuality to an otherwise empty room. When sourcing art, think about what drew you to those pieces. It will probably tell more of a story about you than you’d think! Artwork can also serve as a room's focal point or conversation starter. You better believe we’ll start a conversation over that coveted Michael McGregor beauty hanging above your sofa or that teeny tiny portrait leaning against your bookshelf!
Getting back to the crux of this chapter, though: The truth is, there is no right or wrong way to style art. And that’s what makes it so beautiful. Art (like many things in design) is subjective. What works for you might not work for your friend.
As you go through this chapter, know that while we’ll cover art styling tips and tricks generally taught in the design industry, rules are made to be broken. Feel free to adapt anything you see here to whatever your heart desires!
Art is a form of self-expression and a representation of yourself in your space — it adds a layer of personalization and individuality to an otherwise empty room. When sourcing art, think about what drew you to those pieces. It will probably tell more of a story about you than you’d think! Artwork can also serve as a room's focal point or conversation starter. You better believe we’ll start a conversation over that coveted Michael McGregor beauty hanging above your sofa or that teeny tiny portrait leaning against your bookshelf!
Getting back to the crux of this chapter, though: The truth is, there is no right or wrong way to style art. And that’s what makes it so beautiful. Art (like many things in design) is subjective. What works for you might not work for your friend.
As you go through this chapter, know that while we’ll cover art styling tips and tricks generally taught in the design industry, rules are made to be broken. Feel free to adapt anything you see here to whatever your heart desires!
Art is a form of self-expression and a representation of yourself in your space — it adds a layer of personalization and individuality to an otherwise empty room. When sourcing art, think about what drew you to those pieces. It will probably tell more of a story about you than you’d think! Artwork can also serve as a room's focal point or conversation starter. You better believe we’ll start a conversation over that coveted Michael McGregor beauty hanging above your sofa or that teeny tiny portrait leaning against your bookshelf!
Getting back to the crux of this chapter, though: The truth is, there is no right or wrong way to style art. And that’s what makes it so beautiful. Art (like many things in design) is subjective. What works for you might not work for your friend.
As you go through this chapter, know that while we’ll cover art styling tips and tricks generally taught in the design industry, rules are made to be broken. Feel free to adapt anything you see here to whatever your heart desires!
Don't focus on where your art will go or what it "matches" in your space. Art collecting will be most successful when you focus instead on what speaks to you. We know that might seem a little backwards, but it’s true!
If you gravitate towards a piece of art and want to better understand what that means, ask yourself what you love about it. Is it the color? The content? The medium? What does it mean to you or the space? Does it reflect a hobby? A place you love? As you work through your answers, the process of picking art will become much easier and more intuitive.
If you like to keep your furniture neutral, art is a great way to add color and texture to your space. Art can bring a space to life in all the best ways. If you’re feeling stuck on a color palette, you can borrow one from a piece of art you love and build it out from there.
When choosing the placement of your art, you should always consider the size of the wall it will be placed on and the size of the other elements surrounding it. If the art is too small for the space, it can get lost and be overshadowed by other features or decor. And if it’s too big, it will look out of place. Scale matters a lot more when it comes to where you will place the piece than how big of a size you should buy. A big piece is never a no-no. It’s just where you will put it that matters!
Try to source and style your art in the same rough shape and orientation as the wall behind it. For example, if the wall is a narrow portrait rectangle, your art should be too. If it’s wide and massive, your art can be that too!
Use the scale of the furniture closest to the art wall to help gauge the overall surface area you want the art to take up. As a general guide, the art (whether one piece or multiple) should be roughly ⅔ the width of the furniture it’s closest to. Please know this is not a hard and fast rule; it’s just a starting point for you to play around with!
As a general rule of thumb, you should place art comfortably at eye level so that it has the best chance of catching the viewer’s eye. Also, look up! Will any light fixtures or other suspended elements potentially block the view of the piece?
Eye level will change from room to room based on the function of the space. If you’re in a room where people mostly sit, art can be placed lower than in a room where you’d mostly be standing.
Placing your art 60 inches up from the ground to the center of the wall art piece is a good number to start. You can eyeball it from there to see what feels right.
If you’re placing art above furniture, a good range is 10”-18” from the top of the furniture piece. Again, use your eye to determine the best placement then. Your design eye knows what’s best!
One of the challenges when making a gallery wall or a multi-art wall is how to space the pieces together. It’s a real humdinger to balance: the whole space should look cohesive, but each piece should speak for itself. Let’s dive into some best practices!
Start by laying all of the pieces out on the floor. This will help you get a sense of the general layout you want. Place visually "heavier" pieces (read: bigger in size or louder in color) in the center to create visual balance.
Start with less space between the pieces and then slowly create more and more space between them as you perfect the overall layout.
Generally, 2”-3” between art pieces is a nice balance to ensure there isn’t too much space between them.
🔨 Make sure you have the right tools. A hand level will be your BFF. (Psst... smartphones come with a leveling app if you don’t have a level already.)
🖼️ Decide how many pieces of artwork you want to incorporate. Odd groups, like 3 or 5, are a good starting point. But, of course, the more, the merrier.
☝️ Height matters! The midline of the arrangement should be 60-65" off the floor or 6-12" off the top of the furniture the gallery wall is going behind/above.
📏 Keep the spacing between the pieces somewhat consistent. 1-3" between them is a good rule of thumb.
💭 Dream up the possibilities! Use our gallery wall planner tool to map out your wall hassle-free! If you’re old school or prefer to see things in person, you can cut paper templates into the shapes of your art to play around with placement that way. There is no wrong way to build the layout. Just make sure you love it before you… nail it. (Pun intended 😎)
🔨 Make sure you have the right tools. A hand level will be your BFF. (Psst... smartphones come with a leveling app if you don’t have a level already.)
🖼️ Decide how many pieces of artwork you want to incorporate. Odd groups, like 3 or 5, are a good starting point. But, of course, the more, the merrier.
☝️ Height matters! The midline of the arrangement should be 60-65" off the floor or 6-12" off the top of the furniture the gallery wall is going behind/above.
📏 Keep the spacing between the pieces somewhat consistent. 1-3" between them is a good rule of thumb.
💭 Dream up the possibilities! Use our gallery wall planner tool to map out your wall hassle-free! If you’re old school or prefer to see things in person, you can cut paper templates into the shapes of your art to play around with placement that way. There is no wrong way to build the layout. Just make sure you love it before you… nail it. (Pun intended 😎)
🔨 Make sure you have the right tools. A hand level will be your BFF. (Psst... smartphones come with a leveling app if you don’t have a level already.)
🖼️ Decide how many pieces of artwork you want to incorporate. Odd groups, like 3 or 5, are a good starting point. But, of course, the more, the merrier.
☝️ Height matters! The midline of the arrangement should be 60-65" off the floor or 6-12" off the top of the furniture the gallery wall is going behind/above.
📏 Keep the spacing between the pieces somewhat consistent. 1-3" between them is a good rule of thumb.
💭 Dream up the possibilities! Use our gallery wall planner tool to map out your wall hassle-free! If you’re old school or prefer to see things in person, you can cut paper templates into the shapes of your art to play around with placement that way. There is no wrong way to build the layout. Just make sure you love it before you… nail it. (Pun intended 😎)
🔨 Make sure you have the right tools. A hand level will be your BFF. (Psst... smartphones come with a leveling app if you don’t have a level already.)
🖼️ Decide how many pieces of artwork you want to incorporate. Odd groups, like 3 or 5, are a good starting point. But, of course, the more, the merrier.
☝️ Height matters! The midline of the arrangement should be 60-65" off the floor or 6-12" off the top of the furniture the gallery wall is going behind/above.
📏 Keep the spacing between the pieces somewhat consistent. 1-3" between them is a good rule of thumb.
💭 Dream up the possibilities! Use our gallery wall planner tool to map out your wall hassle-free! If you’re old school or prefer to see things in person, you can cut paper templates into the shapes of your art to play around with placement that way. There is no wrong way to build the layout. Just make sure you love it before you… nail it. (Pun intended 😎)
🔨 Make sure you have the right tools. A hand level will be your BFF. (Psst... smartphones come with a leveling app if you don’t have a level already.)
🖼️ Decide how many pieces of artwork you want to incorporate. Odd groups, like 3 or 5, are a good starting point. But, of course, the more, the merrier.
☝️ Height matters! The midline of the arrangement should be 60-65" off the floor or 6-12" off the top of the furniture the gallery wall is going behind/above.
📏 Keep the spacing between the pieces somewhat consistent. 1-3" between them is a good rule of thumb.
💭 Dream up the possibilities! Use our gallery wall planner tool to map out your wall hassle-free! If you’re old school or prefer to see things in person, you can cut paper templates into the shapes of your art to play around with placement that way. There is no wrong way to build the layout. Just make sure you love it before you… nail it. (Pun intended 😎)
🔨 Make sure you have the right tools. A hand level will be your BFF. (Psst... smartphones come with a leveling app if you don’t have a level already.)
🖼️ Decide how many pieces of artwork you want to incorporate. Odd groups, like 3 or 5, are a good starting point. But, of course, the more, the merrier.
☝️ Height matters! The midline of the arrangement should be 60-65" off the floor or 6-12" off the top of the furniture the gallery wall is going behind/above.
📏 Keep the spacing between the pieces somewhat consistent. 1-3" between them is a good rule of thumb.
💭 Dream up the possibilities! Use our gallery wall planner tool to map out your wall hassle-free! If you’re old school or prefer to see things in person, you can cut paper templates into the shapes of your art to play around with placement that way. There is no wrong way to build the layout. Just make sure you love it before you… nail it. (Pun intended 😎)
A grid is a great way to show a collection of similar-themed art/images. This could be used for family portraits, prints from the same artist, hobbies, or interests like hiking, animals, etc. You name it!
Balanced gallery walls look just as they sound — perfectly balanced! Start with the largest pieces and build around them. Try to stick with only a few frame styles and colors to help achieve a unified look.
Linear gallery walls show a row of art with the same midpoint either hung on a wall or leaning on a ledge/shelf. If on a shelf/ledge, you can also overlap the works a little for a layering effect. *Chef’s kiss*
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