How to Create the Perfect Gallery Wall

Top things to know about creating the perfect gallery wall:

• Before you begin your gallery wall project, make sure you have the right tools. A hand level will be your best friend. Check your smartphone if you don't have a hand level; most come with a leveling app.
• Decide how many pieces of art you want to incorporate. Odd groups, like three or five, are a good starting point.
• When placing your artwork, height matters! The midline of your arrangement should be 60-65" off the finished floor or 6-12" off the top of 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.
• If you're a beginner, try using a visual planner to map your layout easily online. Or, if you're old school, you can cut paper templates into the shapes of your art so you can plan out your gallery wall first. Have fun during this process!

Everyone loves a good gallery wall. Gallery walls are a form of self-expression and a representation of yourself in your space. While there is no right or wrong way to style the art on your gallery wall, we understand that it can feel overwhelming when you aren't sure where to start. Luckily for you, this article will cover tips and tricks generally taught in the design industry to help you get started. So read on to learn more about choosing the correct scale and size of artwork and placing the artwork on your wall. You'll be a gallery wall pro in no time!

The first step to creating the perfect gallery wall is to start your art collection.

When starting your art collection, try not to focus on where it will go or what it "matches" in your space.

Art collecting will be most successful when you focus instead on what speaks to you. If you find yourself gravitating towards a piece of art and want to understand better what that means, ask yourself what about it you love: 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, picking art will become much easier and more intuitive. Before you know it, you'll have a solid collection to start building your gallery wall!

When choosing the size and placement of your artwork, keep these two considerations in mind.

Consider the size of the wall you plan to place your artwork on, the size of the furniture pieces, and other elements in the space surrounding it.

If the art is too small for the room, it can get lost and overshadowed by other features or decor. Alternatively, it will look out of place if it's too big. We recommend sourcing and styling 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. 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.

Use these helpful tips when placing your artwork.

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, don't forget to look up and ask yourself if any light fixtures or other suspended elements will potentially block the view of the piece! Eye-level will change from room to room based on the function of the space. For example, if you’re in a living room where people mostly sit, art can be placed lower than in a room where you’d mostly be standing.

If you're placing art from the ground up, try placing your art 60 inches up from the floor to the center of the art piece is a good number to start. Then, 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.

Properly space out your artwork before hanging it on your wall.

One of the challenges when making a gallery wall is how to space the pieces together. It can be tough to balance; the whole space should look cohesive, but each piece should speak for itself.

Start by laying all the pieces on the floor; this will help you understand the general layout you want. Then, 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.

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^{Photo Credit: (Left) Apartment Therapy}