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Designer outlines three simple steps for buying, framing, and hanging fine art
By Nancy Woods
Portland Tribune Home & Garden section
June 12, 2008
When it comes to fine art to adorn the walls of your home, it's critical to pay close attention to image selection, framing or presentation, and placement, according to Suzanne Gallagher, a Tigard interior designer who specializes in art and custom framing design.
"You have to have all three: the appetizer, main course, and dessert," Gallagher says.
And when it comes to selecting the art, Gallagher encourages homeowners to become more aware of what particular kind of art appeals to them, whether they see it in a catalog, magazine or store window.
Gallagher is a nationally recognized expert, self-proclaimed "wall design diva" and author of "The Fine Art of Wall Design." She says the goal is to uncover "clues to what you like," whether it's a particular subject, style, color or artist.
Some people enjoy landscapes while others prefer portraits. Learning to look at art in that way is a "new frontier for a lot of people, but an informed consumer is a better consumer," she says. "It's all about who you are and what your taste is."
The second step in creating wall art that adds oomph to a room is the framing and presentation. Fortunately for consumers, in recent years, the selection of artfully designed frames has greatly increased.
One point to keep in mind: Any frame should enhance the art first, and the space second, all without overpowering the image.
And when it comes to matting art (and not all art needs a mat), 2.5-inch-wide mats used to be common.
These days it's generally accepted that more breathing room is needed between the art piece and the frame, and 4-inch mats are recommended, even with small images.
Placement, the third component of adding art to the walls in your home, "can be deadly" if not done correctly, Gallagher says.
"If you bring that art piece home and it's beautifully framed and the image is wonderful and you hang it too high, you're going to miss the mark. Everything needs to work together," she says.
When placing art above a fireplace, design guidelines suggest hanging it a hand's width above the mantel.
Like any art, Gallagher says, "good design is timeless. It isn't tricky or funky."
Another point to keep in mind when creating groupings of artwork is to arrange them so that the visual weight falls to the bottom and left.
In Western cultures, "our brain goes left first and then right. It feels better if the weight is to the left, "she says.
In this sense, "weight" is not literal but determined by the impression of the "heaviness" a piece of art conveys or the darkness or thickness of a frame.
The visually "heavier" piece actually may be smaller in linear measurement but convey more weight because of the design of the piece.
By taking the time and effort to follow her considerations it's possible to create wall art that adds "pizzazz, the va va voom, that makes a space pop."
For information, visit the Web site www.walldesigndiva.com.
- When placing a grouping of art over a piece of furniture make sure that the grouping takes up the right amount of space. Too much or too little and the result will look awkward. Rule of thumb: Fill at least two-thirds of the space over the piece of furniture with art.
- When choosing an art frame, make sure it relates to the art, furniture and space and that it isn't too formal or too casual.
- When hanging art over a fireplace mantel, to look balanced, the piece of artwork should be wider than the firebox.
- When experimenting with possible groupings of artwork, try laying the grouping on the floor, then get on a step ladder and peer down, to better see the effect.
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