How to Hang Wall Art: The Complete Guide
HANGING PHOTOGRAPHY PRINTS, PICTURES, AND WALL ART How to hang photography prints, paintings, or any kind of wall art, like a professional? You are the
Create a home gallery wall and make it look professional. Whether you use photography prints, or other wall art, you can create a stunning mini gallery in your home or office. This practical guide will walk you through all the steps and decisions you need to consider. Furthermore, it will point you to additional resources of rich information and visual tips and examples. If you have made the decision to create a gallery wall but need help, this article is for you.
Choosing the right wall for your home gallery is an important and fundamental step. It is similar to selecting the right piece of land, before building a custom home. In my opinion a larger wall is better because it would really enhance the interior design of your space. However, if you have your mind set on a small size wall, or your home only has a small space available, do not despair. You can still apply all the steps in this article and achieve a great result.
If your home allows multiple options, consider the gallery wall’s location in the house. How much time will you spend there? Is it located in a room where you will work, relax, eat, even bathe? Or, is it in a large hallway through which you will pass multiple times a day? Is it probably located near a staircase? Neither of these options are right or wrong. They are just worth considering, before making your decision.
Other aspects to consider for your home gallery wall are: the light (both from natural and artificial sources), the wall color, as well as its texture. All of these will have an effect on the final look and aesthetics. Please note that there is a small section further below that explains each in more detail.
Finally consider what is currently on, and near, the wall. Are there permanent fixtures on it, such as air vents, switches, plugs, or other panels? Those types of items would be more distracting, given that a clean simple wall works better for a gallery. Also, is there furniture that might get in the way, or create a busier space? Consider all of these factors as you make your final selection.
Once you have selected the perfect wall for your home gallery, the next step would be to decide the theme and the mood you want to create with it. Ask yourself questions like these: How do I want the wall art prints to make me, and others, feel when looking at it? What do I want to be reminded of? A place? A memory? A type of landscape that makes me feel good?
Some home gallery theme ideas might be:
Gintchin Fine Art | Limited Edition Print
The next decision in creating a home gallery wall you have to make is – designing the high level style and art arrangement. For example, do you want your gallery wall to have more of a classical, or museum style look? In this case all the art prints are positioned in a single horizontal row. An example of that would be any fine art museum or a gallery. If you choose this option, a large, long wall would definitely be advantageous.
On the other hand, you could opt to have your photo prints be arranged in multiple rows. This would create more of a mosaic look. Also, this type of wall art arrangement would require more skill and precision when it comes to hanging the prints.
Alternatively, you might want to consider a simple triptych orientation, and have only three art pieces on your gallery wall. I have written extensively on triptychs, where you can learn more about the different options they give you.
Now that you have your home gallery wall, theme, and style selected, it is time to decide which photo prints are right for you. What photo images will convey the mood you want to create in your house? How many of them is the right number for your wall? What size/s should they be?
This may be one of the more difficult tasks, when creating a home gallery wall, from an artistic and design perspective. If you struggle here, you might consider reading ​​Interior Design With Nature Photography: Complete Guide. In addition, you might search the web for images of fine art galleries and get a better idea of what you like and what you don’t like.
Nevertheless, I will give you a couple of simple tips you may want to consider. One, when it comes to deciding the number of prints – do not overcrowd your gallery wall. Trying to fill every square inch would create a very busy and distracting home gallery. Two, similar size prints would work better for a single row arrangement, whereas both similar and various size prints can work for a multi-row arrangement.
Your budget is also an important consideration in this decision. Obviously, more prints and large size prints will cost you more. Therefore, be clear on how much you are willing to spend on the art alone. Also note that, depending on some of the decisions you will make in the sections below, you may need to spend more money.
Where should you buy the photo prints for your home gallery? While this can be an article on its own, I will just mention several options. Fine art galleries are an obvious choice. If that is out of your budget, consider buying directly from photographic artists, either online or at an art show.
Regardless of where you buy the fine art photo prints from, I recommend visualizing them on your gallery wall first. This is especially important when buying multiple art prints at once. Having designed and created multiple gallery walls over the years I know the importance of visualization. I have also written on the subject as well – How to visualize fine art prints on your wall?
Gintchin Fine Art | Limited Edition Print
When creating a home gallery photography wall there are multiple print medium options to choose from. There are three questions to consider here. One, how much budget have you allocated? Two, what type of quality and look do you want in your photo art prints? Three, does the artist you are buying from offer the particular print medium you want? Here is a simple breakdown of print mediums, starting with most expensive and highest quality:
Acrylic – TruLife® LumaChrome Prints – As of the writing of this article acrylic prints are the best printing product available on the market. This is a luxury, high-end fine art which has been unparalleled so far.
Metal – ChromaLuxe Prints – Metal prints are a paperless photographic product. This contemporary printing process directly infuses and seals inks onto an aluminum sheet. ChromaLuxe metal prints are high-gloss and with bright and saturated colors. They have a remarkable image quality, archival properties, and physical durability.
Custom Framed Paper Prints – Some photographers offer paper prints on archival papers. Depending on the paper and ink quality used, this could be a very good choice for your home gallery wall. However, the downside is that you need to then find a custom framing shop to have your prints mounted and framed.
Canvas Prints – While canvas prints are no match for acrylic or metal prints, when done right, they can create quite an impressive visual. If you have a limited budget, I would recommend this option.
Another step in creating your dream home gallery is to decide the framing option of your fine art prints. There are several questions to consider. For example, should you have the prints framed or opt for a clean and contemporary look? If you chose to frame, which frame style would look best? Which color should the frames be? Should the prints have a liner or not?
If this seems overwhelming do not worry. I have written a detailed practical guide on this topic – Choosing a Frame for a Landscape Print: How To – Practical Guide.
Gintchin Fine Art | Limited Edition Print
Great, you have your home gallery wall, you know exactly which prints and sizes will go on it, you even know the position of each. But what is the best hanging system for all of this art? You may or may not know that there are options here as well. They don’t all work the same way and offer different advantages and disadvantages. In addition, the skill level required for installation varies as well.
Again, Gintchin Fine Art comes to the education rescue and makes the decision easy for you. To learn more about which hanging system might work best for you, read – Choosing a Wall Art Hanging System.
Whenever creating a home gallery wall it is important to ensure that it is designed in a way that draws the eyes to the art. A distracting wall will take away from the beauty of the photo prints themselves and the overall effect will not be optimal.
A potential distraction could be the wall texture. This is because texture creates contrast. Contrast naturally draws the human eyes and when the viewer is directed to the wall, and not the art, this can be distracting. This would especially be pronounced with images, whose objects have a lot of texture as well.
In my opinion a smooth surface is best for a gallery wall, because it allows the viewer to just focus on the art and not be distracted by unnecessary details. Therefore, if you have selected a textured wall for your gallery, I would recommend considering having it resurfaced by a professional. If this is not an option, then you might want to consider image prints with large, untextured objects, which would help them stand out.
The color of a gallery wall is as important, if not more important, than the texture. The wall color has a big effect on the final look and can make a strong impact on how well, or not, the photo prints stand out.
In general, black and white colors work much better than a colored wall. Again, the goal is to have a non-distracting wall. White, or shades of grey work best for that. However, some neutral colors can also work well, but it will depend on the particular images you are hanging as art.
Also, the darkness of the wall color will play a major role in making your wall art look good. To get a better understanding and some visual examples, read:
Choosing a Frame for a Landscape Print: How To – Practical Guide
Interior Design With Nature Photography: Complete Guide – (read section: FINE ART IMAGE COLOR MATCHING)
Correct hanging of the wall art, when creating a home gallery wall is crucial for two main reasons. First, the photo prints need to be positioned correctly. Meaning, they need to be perfectly level and not slanted, and they also must be at an equal distance from each other. Failing to achieve these will create an amateurish look and not that of a professional gallery. Second, it is important to mount the art pieces securely on the wall so that they do not fall off and cause damage.
If you are up to hanging all the prints by yourself, be sure to read – How to Hang Wall Art: The Complete Guide. If this seems like a daunting task, consider hiring a professional.
The final step in completing a home gallery photo wall is the lighting. Maybe the wall you chose already has sufficient light and there is nothing more to do but to sit and enjoy your brand new gallery. On the other hand, it would be a waste to go through all of the above steps only to end up with a poorly lit gallery wall.
Therefore, as the last recommendation, I would like to stress the importance of a properly lit art wall. If you have ever set foot in a fine art gallery or a museum, you know that many light fixtures hang above all the wall art. This is because proper illumination makes the prints look their best.
For more information be sure to read:
Photography Art Illumination Complete Guide
Correct Color Temperature When Lighting Prints
Gintchin Fine Art offers a 30 minute no-obligation complimentary art consultation. Having designed and built gallery walls in home, office, corporate, and art gallery interiors I can help you make the right choice. If you need advice on choosing the right photograph, print size, print medium, frame option, hanging system, etc. I can help. Take advantage of my experience and skills, and request your no-pressure art consulting session today.
HANGING PHOTOGRAPHY PRINTS, PICTURES, AND WALL ART How to hang photography prints, paintings, or any kind of wall art, like a professional? You are the
HOW TO SELECT THE BEST WALL ART HANGING SYSTEM Knowing how to choose the best hanging system is important when you hang a photo print,
The ability to visualize art prints on your wall before buying is a skill that can save you headaches. Whether you are an art curator,
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Gintchin Fine Art offers exclusive limited edition fine art photography by Lazar Gintchin, a nature and landscape photographer specializing in large format size prints. Each image in Gintchin’s portfolio is a unique and limited edition print. The gallery includes high-quality wall art prints in acrylic and metal mediums, providing a luxurious fine art presentation. With a diverse range of genres to choose from, art enthusiasts can curate a collection that reflects their aesthetic preferences.