How to Select Art for Your Home...
Selecting art for your home can be an exciting adventure and a source of
enjoyment for years to come. Keys to success are figuring out what kind
of art you like, how it will fit in with the rest of your interior
design plans, and how to exhibit the art to the best effect in your
home.
What kind of art do you like?
If you regularly visit galleries and museums, you probably already have
a good sense of what kind of art appeals to you. If not, there are many
opportunities to browse art within your community at local exhibitions
and art fairs. Even small towns usually have a non-profit gallery space,
and your local café or restaurant may exhibit the works of local
artists. In larger cities, galleries often get together for monthly or
periodic “gallery nights” where all the galleries hold open house
receptions on the same evening. It’s a great way to see a lot of art in
a short time.
Today the internet provides the largest variety and depth of fine art
available worldwide. You can visit museum websites and see master works
from ages past, check out online galleries for group shows, and visit
hundreds of individual artists’ websites. One advantage of using the
internet is that you can search for the specific kind of art you are
interested in, whether it’s photography, impressionism, bronze
sculpture, or abstract painting. And when you find one art site, you’ll
usually find links to many, many more.
Should the art fit the room or the room fit the art?
As an artist, I’d certainly prefer that everyone buy the art they love
and then find a place to put it. If you feel strongly about a particular
work of art, this is certainly the way to go. But you may find that when
you get the art home and place it on a wall or pedestal, it doesn’t work
with its surroundings. By not “working,” I mean the art looks out of
place in the room. Placing art in the wrong surroundings takes away from
its beauty and impact.
What should you do if you bring a painting home and it clashes with its
environment?
First, hang the painting in various places in your home, trying it out
on different walls. It may look great in a place you hadn’t planned on
hanging it. If you can’t find a place where the art looks its best, you
may need to make some changes in the room, such as moving furniture or
taking down patterned wallpaper and repainting in a neutral color. The
changes will be worth making in order to enjoy the art you love.
Sometimes the right lighting is the key to showing art at its best. You
may find that placing a picture light above a painting or directing
track lighting on it is all the art needs to exhibit its brilliance. If
you place a work of art in direct sunlight, however, be sure it won’t be
affected by the ultraviolet light. Pigments such as water
How to pick art to fit the room.
If you prefer to do the room first and then find the art, size and color
are the two major criteria for selecting art to fit its surroundings.
For any particular space, art that is too large will overwhelm and art
that is too small will be lost and look out of proportion. The bolder
the art, the more room it needs to breathe.
As a rule, paintings should be hung so that the center of the painting
is at eye level. Sculpture may sit on the floor, a table, or pedestal,
depending on the design. Rules should be considered guidelines only,
however, so feel free to experiment. One collector, for example, hung an
acrylic painting on their bedroom ceiling so they could better view it
while lying down.
When selecting a painting to match color, select one or two of the
boldest colors in your room and look for art that has those colors in
it. You’re not looking for an exact match here. Picking up one or two of
the same colors will send a message that the painting belongs in this
environment.
Another possibility for dealing with color is to choose art with muted
colors, black-and-white art, or art that is framed in a way that mutes
its color impact in the room. A wide light-colored mat and neutral frame
create a protected environment for the art within.
Style is another consideration when selecting art to fit a room. If your
house is filled with antiques, for example, you’ll want to use
antique-style frames on the paintings you hang there. If you have
contemporary furniture in large rooms with high ceilings, you’ll want to
hang large contemporary paintings.
How to create an art-friendly room.
Think about it. When you walk into a gallery or museum, what do they all
have in common? White walls and lots of light. If a wall is
wall-papered or painted a color other than white, it limits the choices
for hanging art that will look good on it. If a room is dark, the art
will not show to its best advantage.
If you want to make art the center of attraction, play down the other
elements of the room like window coverings, carpeting, wall coverings,
and even furniture. A room crowded with other colors, textures and
objects will take the spotlight away from the art.
You may want to select one room in your house to focus on art. Paint the
walls white or off-white. Lay hardwood floors or a neutral carpet.
Install window coverings with clean simple lines and neutral colors (or
no window coverings at all). Put up ceiling spot lights that can be
adjusted to focus on the art, or use individual lighting for each piece.
For the furniture, follow the principle that less is more. Keep it
spare. This is not the room to display your collectibles. Let the art
star. Then relax and enjoy it.
Selecting and displaying art is an art in itself. Experiment to learn
what pleases you and what doesn’t. You’ll be well-rewarded for the time
you invest by finding more satisfaction both in the art and in your
home.
Source:
http://www.artbylt.com
Lynne Taetzsch
www.artbylt.com
145 Honness Lane
Ithaca, NY 14850
607-273-0266
lt@artbylt.com
*Picture lights come in a variety of styles and sizes and can be found
on several internet sites.
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