How To: Gallery Wall
Updated: Nov 7, 2020
The art of mixing and matching art and objects on a wall is open for interpretation. The best place to start is to survey all of the art you already have... your private collection! A gallery wall honors your pieces and showcases your history.
“Luxury, to me, is not about buying expensive things; it’s about living in a way where you appreciate things.” – Oscar de la Renta
There are many theories about what makes a great gallery wall, and they all work. If you want every frame to match, great do that. It is not necessary, however, to have all of your gallery pieces coordinate. In fact, the more texture and variety, the more interesting the wall and the more it reveals about your journey in collecting art and objects.
5 Steps to Organizing Your Gallery Wall
Starting with a blank wall is best when building your gallery wall. You will start in the middle and then build out as you collect more pieces to add.
Gather everything you intend to hang in this collection. Paintings, posters, small shelves, wall planters, all of it. You'll first arrange things on the floor before committing it to the wall.
Start with your largest piece, place it slightly to the right or left of the center of your gallery space. If you have two large pieces that work together consider putting them side by side or stacking them one on top of the other.
Next, gather your medium sized pieces and begin to arrange them like puzzle pieces keeping roughly the same amount of space around each one. (Gallery walls are great because alignment is a bit more arbitrary.)
Now, fill in with your smallest pieces around the edges and in any gaps towards the middle. (Walk away for a few minutes and come back to view your composition, is there anything you want to change?)
Once you have your arrangement decided on, gather your hanging supplies and begin to hang your pieces. Again start in the middle with the largest and build out just as you did on the floor.
As your collection takes shape, you may see room for additional pieces needed to create the just right balance of size, texture, color and shape of your overall gallery wall composition. This is what makes collecting art so fun, you are always on the lookout for the piece that feels just right.
Happy collecting!
XO
