Jasmine Cunningham
One of our favorite things about a gallery wall is its flexibility – it’s the Cirque de Soleil of art collecting. In the spirit of mixing things up, today we’re mining Jen’s endless cache of brilliant ideas for making your tried and true gallery wall feel fresh again. No new nail holes, very little framing expense (you might need a new mat cut to fit your art), and a big impact.
Think thematically – hang pieces that all feature a predominant color (green or yellow would be a fresh choice), destination or favorite hobby.
Aperture and Blind Spot are great sources for benefit photography editions, and our 5+5 contributor The Jealous Curator is constantly featuring interesting new artists on her blog. Fill a shadow box with your matchbook collection or pick up a map of a favorite destination.
Mix and match cool blue tones for a relaxing, themed gallery wall. Personally, I’m a big fan of mixing things up to create a truly eclectic, interesting salon-style gallery wall. If you’re wary of all of those nail holes, layer framed art along the back of a desk or credenza, so you get the effect of a gallery wall without the work (a great trick for renters). TIP: Use a removable adhesive putty to ensure your art stays put, and doesn’t fall off the desk every time a door slams.
), repurpose an original you have displayed elsewhere in the house, or consider making your TV part of the gallery wall, which has the added benefit of playing down the largesse of an oversized big screen. TIP: Remember that any time you’re hanging a gallery wall, the name of the game is ordered chaos.
If you’re going more eclectic, remember that you want the distance between each piece to be roughly the same, and it’s easier on the eyes if either the top or the bottom of your grouping is level. Mock up your layout on the floor first, or think about cutting out pieces of paper to size and taping those up on the wall to get your grid organized.
Not just when you first hang things, but whenever you do a thorough dusting – nothing ruins the effect of a well-curated gallery wall faster than lopsided frames.
