How to create a display with confidence
A gallery wall gives a room personality and tells a story. Done haphazardly, it is simply visual chaos. A good one takes planning: a sense of scale, rhythm and what holds the collection together.
This guide sets out the principles, with answers to the awkward features of British houses, such as picture rails, uneven walls and small rooms, and advice on mixing different frames.
The quick answer
Put the centre of the whole arrangement at about 150cm from the floor, which is average eye level. Keep a consistent 5 to 8cm between frames. Link the pictures by a theme, a colour palette or a period. Plan with paper templates, hang with a spirit level, and relate the group to the furniture or architecture around it.
The principles
Purpose and theme
Every good gallery wall tells a story, so decide what yours is. It might be the family through the generations, a study of British wildflowers, or a collection of abstract prints.
Limit the frames to two or three finishes that go together, such as antique gold with matt black, or pale oak with brushed brass. Mixing media adds life, but let one kind dominate, whether paintings, photographs or textiles, so that the wall does not become overwhelming.
Spacing and balance
Consistent spacing is what turns clutter into a collection. Keep 5 to 8cm between every pair of frames, and think of the gaps as part of the design.
An asymmetrical arrangement has energy, but it needs balance. Offset a large landscape with a cluster of three small pictures diagonally opposite. Line the frames up on imaginary horizontal and vertical lines, so that each has at least one edge in line with a neighbour. Avoid corners that almost touch at odd angles.
Layouts and hanging
Four layouts
- Grid. Matching frames in rows and columns. It suits contemporary rooms and demands exact spacing.
- Salon hang. Frames from near the ceiling down to furniture height, closely packed. It is ideal for period rooms with high walls.
- Organic cluster. An irregular group built round one outstanding piece. Good above a sofa or a bed.
- Linear run. A line of frames along a hallway, or following the slope of the stairs.
Hanging with precision
- Draw round every frame on brown paper and label each template, for example 'Grandma's portrait, black frame'. Mark where the hook goes.
- Cut them out and fix them to the wall with low-tack masking tape.
- Live with the paper version for a day or two. Look at it from the doorway and from where you sit.
- Adjust until it is right, then put the hooks in through the templates.
- Hang the pictures, checking the tops and sides of neighbouring frames with a spirit level as you go.
Use hooks rated for the weight of each picture. On plaster, picture hooks with fine pins do the least damage. On brick or stone, use wall plugs and screws.
Working with the house
Picture rails
If you have a picture rail, use it. Pictures hung from rail hooks on cord or chain leave no holes in the wall and can be rearranged at any time. Position the group so that its visual centre is still at about 150cm. It is the traditional way to hang a salon-style wall, and lets the collection change as it grows.
Uneven walls and awkward corners
Old walls are rarely true. An asymmetrical arrangement hides unevenness better than a grid, which shows up every deviation. A corner can be bridged with an L-shaped arrangement, with a tall picture on one wall and a wider companion on the other.
In a small room, stack pictures vertically above a console table or a sideboard, to draw the eye up and suggest height. Under a sloping ceiling, keep the bottom edges level and let the tops step down with the slope.
Composition
Leading the eye
Put the dominant pieces where the eye naturally stops, such as the middle of the bed wall or beside the fireplace. Repeat an accent colour from the cushions or curtains in some of the smaller pictures. Mix upright and landscape formats, but let one predominate. Use what is in the pictures too. A figure's gaze, or a road in a landscape, leads towards whatever is next to it.
Mixing frames and sizes
An eclectic wall needs a few rules.
- Limit the ornate. One carved gilt frame to every four or five plain ones is about right.
- Have a hierarchy of sizes. Anchor the wall with at least one large piece, of 40 x 50cm or more. Add medium ones of about 25 x 30cm. Scatter small ones close to larger neighbours, never marooned on their own.
- Use the mounts. Mounts of the same colour or width connect pictures that have nothing else in common.
Practical points
Light and position
Keep delicate work out of direct sunlight. A picture light angled across a textured piece brings out its depth. In a dim hall, hang the lighter pictures opposite the light. Above a sofa or sideboard, start the display 15 to 20cm above the furniture, so that the two read together. Check the view from the main seats.
Let it grow
Start with five to seven pieces and leave room for more. Photograph the arrangement, so that you can recreate it after decorating or a move. Use the same kind of hanging fitting on every frame, so that pictures can swap places without new holes. Once a year, take down what no longer pleases you and add what does.
Conclusion
A good gallery wall combines precision with instinct. Centre it at eye level, keep the spacing disciplined, respect the features of the house, plan carefully and hang patiently. Then the wall will say something about you, and not merely fill a space.
EasyFrame offers a wide range of made-to-measure frames, and with long experience we can advise on the right frames for a gallery wall. Call us on 01234 856 501 or email sales@easyframe.co.uk. We are always happy to talk, whether or not you want to buy.