How to Hang Your Art

We’ve come up with a few tips to make sure that your arrangement does your prints justice.

Grid

A grid can be a great way to display art if you have a few pictures of the same size.

  • When hanging pictures in a grid formation treat them as one large picture.
  • This also applies when hanging a pair of artworks, either one above the other or side by side.
  • Try to get a sense of the proportions and see it within the context of all the other elements in the room.
  • Leave a gap of 5cm between larger pictures and 4cm if they’re smaller.
  • Top Tip: Loop a thread at one end and secure a weight to the other end. Once you have attached the top row of hooks or nails to the wall, hang the thread on it. That way, you can have a straight line to guide you and ensure that you align the lower rows exactly in line with those above.

Row

Hanging pictures in a row works whether or not pictures are the same size.

  • If you have a selection of pictures that are different sizes you can choose to line up the top, middle or bottom of the pictures depending on what floats your boat.

Salon-hanging

Deriving from the style of the Hermitage in St Petersburg, Petersburg Hanging involves packing as many pieces as possible together, to show you the breadth of your collection.

  • Experiment with differing styles placed together – perfect correlation of sizes is unnecessary, so combine different textures, framed/unframed, prints and dimensions to create a melange of formats and features.
  • Begin in the middle and work outwards. If you begin with what you have, you can add to your collection without continually having to re-design your gallery wall.
  • Arrange your images on the floor before you mount them to the wall, ensuring that you are completely sure of your preferred layout before you put any nails into the wall. Use tape to set a limit on where the images begin and end, so that you can be confident that your pieces are straight.
  • Above all, don’t worry about traditional aesthetics or conventions. You are going to see the wall more than anyone else, so decide on a style that you like and run with it.

Loose grid

Pitching between strict symmetry and freeform hanging, a loose grid can give an array of differently-sized prints an air of organized chaos.

  • One method is to arrange the varying sizes of print along the same straight line, so that the edges are parallel to each other, allowing their differing sizes to come to the fore.
  • Alternatively, place one row of one size of prints between two rows of a different size to create a mirror effect. These rows can be horizontal or vertical.

Frame collage

Create a collage of existing prints, by curating and matching your growing collection.

  • Use prints which feature common qualities, colours, typographies or subject matter.
  • Hang them in close proximity and in matching frames to achieve the effect of a larger artwork, created by teaming the prints which you already own.

Alternative hangers

Retro clipboards and clothes hangers offer a great way of showcasing smaller, unframed prints. A wire strung across your wall with a few metal clips attached will work equally well.

Frame with tape

Sticking your images to the wall with colourful tape creates a playful vibe. High quality masking tapes like Washi Tape can be removed without a trace.

The correct height

When hanging a single print, the centre should be approximately at eye level. Eye level can vary, depending on your walls and height, but should in general be around 1.6 metres from the floor. Windows or doors can also influence the correct height at which one should hang prints, as their height should always be factored into any decision. It can be more aesthetically pleasing to match where you hang your prints to the features that already exist in a room.

Test before you hang

Before hanging up a large number of images, make sure that you test the combination to gauge how they will combine on the wall. Arrange them on the floor first to get an impression and to decide upon layout. Once you have decided how you are to hang your prints, get a friend to hold the picture to the wall and check that it looks good before you begin banging in nails.