The Art of Displaying Art

If you've ever spent hours hanging pictures only to discover that what you've created isn't so pretty, this story is for you. Designer Jayne Pelosi shares foolproof ways to make compelling displays.

Adapted from Interior Divine: Walking You Through the Transformation of Your Home by Jayne Pelosi, principal of Renaissance Interior Design.

Art is really one of those defining elements that elevates the overall sophistication of a space. And yet, the thought of buying and hanging art seems to fill many of my clients with fear. And the single most recurring faux pas I see in clients’ homes when they have taken the leap is art hung too high on the wall. Prints or portraits should be hung at approximately the eye level of a person standing between 5 foot 6 and 5 foot 8. Of course, if you’re a diminutive family, I’m not advocating neck strain. The goal is to be able to enjoy the artwork at a natural level. Not to have to be looking up at it.

The other keys to displaying art? Buy what you love and surround yourself with it. It doesn’t have to be expensive or valuable to provide you with great pleasure on a daily basis. Here, a few tips to get you going.

Arranging 101

Next: The Power of the Small

Often I see artwork spread across an entire wall. This reminds me of strangers waiting at a bus stop—unrelated, anonymous and distant. When creating a display on a large wall, it’s important that the artwork be hung close together, with a relationship to each other, rather than scattered across the space. Even if you’re hanging pictures over a couch or buffet, don’t feel they have to be spaced out over the entire 7-foot furniture piece. Try to have the pieces equidistant from each other, but centered over the middle third or half of the focal point. If you’re building a collage over time, by starting in the center with a cluster of pictures you can gradually fill the wall space around the cluster without having to take pieces down, patch holes and start over. You can also play with your pieces by taping paper templates up on the wall or spreading the art pieces on the floor and shuffling them around until you get the look you want.