Khanyi Mlaba
Refresh your home during the Covid-19 lockdown with these ideas for rearranging your favourite pictures
Similar to hanging artwork: Decorating with Digital Prints
There are many different reasons for hanging art in your home; it appeals to you, reminds you of a special time, makes you think, takes you to another world and brings your home to life. But, after a while you tend to take these paintings, drawings and photographs for granted. One way to refresh your interest and your home at the same time, is to move them around and hang them in different rooms. You could also combine them with other artwork that complements them. Here are some ideas to inspire you.
1. ALL IN THE FAMILY
Instead of hanging family photographs all over the house, group them together as was done in this hallway. What makes this arrangement so effective is that all the photographs have similar frames.
2. SEASIDE INSPIRATION
You don’t have to stick to pictures or paintings. In this striking arrangement the owners combined paintings with objects such as wooden fish and a painted plate. However, they all fit into the beach/ocean theme.
Read more: A coastal home with breath-taking views
3. THE POWER OF DARKNESS
Dark walls are ideal for showing off groups of artworks especially those with light frames and matt boards. In this living room interior designer David Muirhead painted the wall a deep charcoal to highlight an eclectic mix of works, including a Maggie Laubser and an architectural photograph.
4. ALL IN ONE
By arranging three framed pictures in a row above her TV unit, interior designer Jenna Page made the TV part of the composition and balanced it with a lamp and accessories on one side.
5. GROUP THERAPY
Grouping pictures gives them so much more impact. If these framed pictures were dotted around this KZN country house, you might never notice them, but placed together on a wall they make a statement.
6. A GOOD FOUNDATION
Make use of a console table or mantelpiece as a base for a grouping of pictures. Here Lee-Ann Vigus of LVstar Interiors used a floating shelf to underline a collection of black and white prints.
CHAPTERS INTERIORS ACADEMY HAS THIS ADVICE FOR HANGING ART:
– Make sure that the centre of the art work or grouping is approximately at eye level. As the eye level rule won’t work for all the pieces in the grouping, just apply it to the central components.
– If you’re hanging a picture above a piece of furniture, as a general rule, the picture should be about two thirds of the width of the item.
– Hang pictures approximately 15 to 30cm above the piece of furniture to establish a relationship between them.
– Stick to a theme, for example family photos, land or seascapes, botanical prints, etc. Should the subject matter vary significantly, create a link through the choice of frames and matt boards.
– Keep the spaces between each picture approximately the same. Don’t make them too large or the composition will lose cohesion. Start from the centre of the composition and work outwards.
