Art Star: Here’s How to Hang Art in Your New Home the Right Way

Having art in your home is not as easy as just sticking it on the wall. There’s an art to it (ha). Bad jokes aside, there are many things to consider when hanging art: size of the art, types of art, frame choices, placement in relation to your furniture, etc.

Award-winning interior designer Donna Grace McAlear of New Mood Design, LLC, advises new homeowners make sure “the artwork (is) scaled appropriately to the wall area and the furnishings in the space. There should be enough wall and air space surrounding the artwork to view it comfortably. Conversely, the wall shouldn’t be so large that a small artwork becomes insignificant.”

Visual art has the ability to transform your space from a house to your own personally curated gallery. With art on your walls, you get to make a statement, whether subtle or boisterous, to every visitor that walks into your home. Or maybe you just want to adorn your house with beauty.

Whatever your reason, art can make any room more interesting. It can be a conversation starter and/or something nice to look at while you go about your day.

Hang Art the Right Way

Not sure of the right way to hang your art?

Here’s a tip from McAlear: Hang the center of your art so that its center point is 57 inches off the floor, a.k.a. “on center.” On average, our eyeline height is around 57 inches. So, you and your guests will be naturally drawn to whatever you hang at that height.

Seek Design Inspiration

I have a confession to make. I’ve gone down the Pinterest rabbit hole so many times, I basically live there. I love using Pinterest because it allows me to use visual inspiration to help me refine the looks I want in my own home. And in the same vein, you can use it to help you figure out how you want to fit art into your new home.

You can start by searching for “wall art” in Pinterest where you’ll find various photos, illustrations and paintings hung in different ways. I also like to find pins that are room specific. I want to see how people display art next to bookcases or how they decorate a blank wall that is complemented by an armchair. Then, I take a look at suggested similar pins and that gives me a good idea of what I like or don’t like and how art can work in any room.

And don’t be afraid to go off the beaten path with what you consider art. The sky is the limit. You can frame and hang books, flowers, vintage wallpaper or even embroidered tweets. It’s your home, you can choose art that suits your personality.

Frame Art with Intention

“I would prefer to view a work of art unframed than to put it in the wrong frame,” Eli Wilner, chief executive of Wilner & Co., a New York frame dealer once told the Wall Street Journal. “The wrong frame will destroy the artist’s intentions.”

The frame you choose has to complement the art and your space. A baroque/gothic frame in a minimalist room most likely won’t go well together. Think of a frame as the item that ties the entire look of a room together. If the art is the conversation starter, then the frame’s job is to make sure that your art stands out in the best way possible.

The great thing is that there are so many framing choices nowadays. And you don’t even have to leave your house to get the right frame. It seems like there’s a new online framing company popping up every few months.

Here are a few online framing companies you can use:

• Framebridge
• Simply Framed
• Level Frames
• Art to Frames

For many of these companies, you just need to upload a photo, choose a custom frame and then voila, it’s shipped right to your door. But if you want a more hands-on approach (because sometimes it helps to touch and feel a frame before you buy), check out the brick-and-mortar framing companies in your area.