What’s the secret to a dynamic gathering of pictures on the wall? How do you get them evenly spaced? Where do you start?
Hanging pictures ‘GALLERY STYLE’ is a favourite of ours in our home. It’s graphic, tells a story, and commands the viewers attention. It’s an excellent conversation starter, and it always brings a smile to a sweet face when the media is my favouirte…family. Whether it’s chic and modern in black and white, or colourful and abstract with loads of colour, clustering your artwork is a stylish way to display several important pictures at once.
Gallery style hanging can tell a story…start when your child is born, and work left to right through the months in his or her first year. It can show emotion…self-portraits from still to smiling, to frowning, to screaming. It can show colour progression…a focal point of white, leading though the colour wheel in a variety of different pictures. And, of course, you can simply hang your favourites, and then the story genuinely becomes the memories that the pictures evoke.
There are countless ways to hang your artwork – the first way is the BASIC GRID GALLERY –
There are a few tricks to handing your artwork in this way. And you’ll need a few tools. Not much really, just three – a laser level, pencil, and tape measure…and you’ll probably want to add to that some patience, and perhaps a glass of wine (both for encouragement and reinforcement!)
HANGING GALLERY STYLE (WHERE THE SIZE OF THE FRAME IS THE SAME, HUNG IN A BASIC GRID)
- First, measure the entire wall to find the centre both horizontally & vertically. Then do the same for each print. Leave about 2-3 inches between the frames for hanging.
- Next, add up the total width & height of the framed photos with the spacing in between. Subtract your measurements from the overall wall measurements to find your total ‘outside’ dimensions. This will show you where to hang your outside frames. Use the tape measure to mark these points, and then use a laser level to connect the points and lightly draw a line with the pencil.
- Place your first frame up – start at the top left and work from there. Use a pencil to mark your corners (both vertical & horizontal) & then make an additional mark for the centre of the frame with your pencil (make a mark on the wall for both the side and the top).
- Take your measuring tape & pull the hanging wire(on the back of the picture) tightly to measure the distance from the top of the frame down to the wire. This is where the nail will be on the wall (from the line you drew at the top of the frame down). Mark this distance on the wall. Measure for the centre of the picture. Mark this on the wall (using the outside line you drew from #2). You have just found the point where the picture hangs on the wall.
- Next I hang the frame on the opposite top right side using the same method from step #3 and #4.
- To hang the middle frame, measure the distance between the inside edges of your two frames to find your centre top point. Use your level to be sure that you are level with the top of the outside two frames. Repeat #4 to hang the centre top frame.
- For the next row down, you will start on the left side of your gallery again. Follow #4 to figure out the distance from the top of the frame to the wire. Add the space between the frames and find your centre point from the top frame, then measure down to put your hook in the wall.
- Repeat #4, #5, #6 for each row.
- You have successfully hung your gallery wall
You can also hang your pictures in a more organic way – THE FRACTAL OR CENTRE LINE –
To make this type of gallery wall, it’s best to cut out onto paper the size of each frame and then tape your tracing onto the wall. Repeat this step for each frame to create a collage that looks pleasing to you. You won’t need a level for this one, just a great eye! See below for a visual –
Here are some more examples of GRID GALLERY hanging in our home. You can also check out my DYNAMIC DESIGN section on Artwork or hit up my ‘Gallery style hanging’ board on Pinterest for even more examples!
Make it Your Own, and You make it Your Home.
Categories: Decorating, DIY
Stylish Life & Home 