The Gallery Wall

Everyone loves a gallery wall! It’s a fun, easy way to make a big statement. It’s also a particularly convenient design choice for those who like to collect art but also inhabit a tiny city apartment with limited wall space (me!). There’s a lot of advice circulating on how to pull together a group of pictures.

Here are a few rules I like to go by. 

The “heavier” the pictures, the fewer I group together. By this I mean both physically weighty - large canvases with bulky frames - and visually heavy pieces with bold colors and/or lots of detail. Heavier pictures tend to demand more attention, and I find that sticking to a smaller group (3-4 works) maintains the impact of individual pieces that might otherwise get lost on a busy wall. With more delicate pictures I don’t limit myself.

I also don’t worry about lining up frame edges and find that a loose grouping gives the feeling of being collected and added to one by one over time.

Finally, choosing one element of consistency can make an arrangement look more cohesive and can better complement the overall decor of your space. This can mean using the same color or style of frame, or choosing pieces that share a similar color palette, medium, era, style or subject.