6 Best Tips For Showcasing Fine Art For Your Home
6 BEST TIPS FOR SHOWCASING FINE ART FOR YOUR HOME
Congratulations! You found artwork you love at your local art fair or maybe you purchased a new limited edition piece online for your living space…now what? Deciding on the perfect space to display your new investment can seem like a daunting task. Whether you are in the beginning stages of acquiring art or are a seasoned collector, learning best practices and equipping yourself with the right tools can make your new or existing pieces of artwork truly stand out in your home. Below are some elegant and easy ways to showcase your new piece.
UNDERSTAND YOUR AREA
Grab the latest edition of Architectural Digest and get your Pinterest boards ready. It’s time to channel your inner Feng Shui and flex your interior design muscles.
Before you plan how you will hang your artwork (or many times before you even purchase your artwork), it’s important to take the time to assess the space where it will be on display. Large hanging wall art can serve as a major focal point in hallways, great rooms, and stairwells. On the contrary, smaller pieces can add nice accents of texture or pops of color to complement existing pieces, walls, or furnishings.
During hours of low light, these elusive Death Valley mud cracks light up and transform into something from another world. Fine Art Limited Edition of 100.
Don’t forget to keep the dimensions of your space in mind. Pay attention to the room’s structure, wall shape, and ceiling height. Is there wainscoting or wall trim? Does the area include a fireplace? These are factors that come into play when deciding the size and dimensions of your artwork.
2. CREATE A COLOR PALETTE
One of the most important factors to get right is knowing how to use color in your chosen space. Your art piece should complement and play off the existing colors and tonalities in the room, not work against them.
Without diving deep into color theory, which would take more than just a simple blog post to cover even the basics, think about the colors of your existing furnishings and walls. Rooms that have saturated wall colors will slightly limit the color palette of decorations in the room, including hanging wall art. Focus on complimentary colors within the color wheel; artwork showcasing dominant yellows go well in rooms with red or cyan walls. Small or large pieces with shades of magenta go well in rooms with green walls. These examples are also where black and white fine art photography really shines, where textures and tonalities offer a nice balance to the richness of the room.
The opposite, say a space that is designed in a modern, new colonial or Scandinavian style with more neutral tones, is more welcoming of large format artwork with vibrant colors. In this case, the fine artwork serves as a statement piece and one of the main focal points in the room.
The historic T.A. Moulton Barn, lit nicely by the rising sun, poses as the perfect subject in Grand Teton National Park. Fine Art Limited Edition of 50.
3. LIGHTING IS CRITICAL
Light your artwork. I’ll say it again. Light. Your. Artwork.
If you visit a local art gallery, you’ll notice one thing all of them have in common: they probably light all the work on display using professional lighting systems. Gallery owners know that quality lights, especially those with a high CRI (color rendering index), bring out truest colors and tonalities within the artwork itself. Without light, the art can appear lifeless, lacking depth in its highlights and shadows.
Properly lighting your art piece can be done using existing natural light or artificial fixtures. If your space includes plenty of natural ambient lighting, this can be a good option for an organic and minimalist appearance. Just be aware – prolonged direct sunlight can cause artwork to wear and fade over time. Focus on areas of the room that get plenty of indirect or “bounced” light instead. We’ll cover how to illuminate wall art using different lighting styles in a separate blog post.
4. GO VERTICAL
Thinking outside the box when assessing a space in your home or office can lead to some unique design choices. Adding vertical landscape art to unconventional wall space, such as entryways or above tall fireplaces, can make the area appear larger by driving up the focal points within the room.
A stunning landmark found along the coast in Newport, Rhode Island. The iconic lighthouse stands tall among the jagged rock that spans much of the New England coast. Fine Art Limited Edition of 50.
Large vertical pieces that include main subjects like trees, lighthouses, and large abstracts can all create the illusion of making the space appear larger. Remember, there’s always room for experimentation – if the artwork doesn’t feel right in the space, try it somewhere else.
5. CREATE A NARRATIVE
As a landscape artist, I can confidently say there’s a story associated with every piece taken in photographer’s portfolio. Often, the story is what resonates with each collector on an emotial level. By displaying it in a home however, you can create a unique story or narrative given your visual style. Do you have artwork with similar themes that complement each other in a space? Or do you with to develop complex ideas by juxtaposing contrasting works in the same room? Perhaps you’re interested in grouping artwork by like colors to bring forth similar energies to the room. Every way allows you to create stories, themes, and messaging. It’s part of what makes art so beautiful.
Idaho aspens are gorgeous in their fall colors but Spring gives the leaves a nice shade of green shortly after budding. Fine Art Limited Edition of 50.
6. SWITCH IT UP
You know that gorgeous framed 40”x60” of Colorado aspen trees you have hanging in your living room? Try mounting it above your large entry table next year. You may be pleasantly surprised with how much color it adds to your main hallway and how many compliments you’ll get from your houseguests.
This one is a simple way to keep your existing artwork as fresh and interesting as the first day you purchased it. Moving a few pieces around in your home or office can make the space even more dynamic than where it once was.
It's not always that easy to shift around large artwork, especially if one was made custom for a specific area. But when you’re able, try it once or twice. Like a fresh coat of paint, it can keep things feeling new and energized.
Just like the work itself, finding the perfect addition to the walls of your home can be a subjective choice. Hopefully this guide can help get you started and point you in the right direction. Collecting your own personal gallery of artwork is a lifelong journey. Enjoy the ride. And happy decorating!