How to Hang a Picture Gallery

Photo courtesy of Pottery Barn

Hanging your artwork or photographs gallery style is a daunting task for most home owners. Our clients frequently request that we arrange and hang family photo galleries or collections of framed art work for them because they are terrified of doing it themselves! It is difficult for most people to create these compositions and they are not even sure where to start. Here are a few tips to give you confidence to create a gallery wall.

Photo courtesy of Pottery Barn

The first thing that you need to tackle is rounding up all of the photographs, mementos, and artwork that you would like to group together. A gallery may contain only photographs, art or a combination of both. Collections that contain both photos and art are more intriguing then just one or the other and draw the viewer in. Including personal mementos or unusual objects makes the arrangement more casual and individual. Comic strips, children’s art, love notes, four leaf clovers, funny want ads, postcards, and concert tickets are examples of items that our Calgary interior design firm, Corea Sotropa Interior Design, has included in amongst the galleries of our clients. This creates a really personalized, quirky and fun gallery that has special meaning to our clients.

Photo courtesy of Martha Stewart via Under a Paper Moon

Your next step is to decide how all of your items should be framed. Using the same frame for each piece can be dramatic, but usually only works if you are solely planning to display photographs. If you are planning to display both photography and other items then frame all the photographs identically and select frames for the other items that complement the object. Pottery Barn and Ikea have a great selection of basic frames for photographs. A framing shop can help you to select the color of matte and frame that highlights the art or memento. Selecting an ornate frame is a whimsical way of drawing attention to items that are special or very different from the rest of the collection.

Photo courtesy of Pottery Barn

Galleries may be displayed in a random fashion or in a very ordered layout. When all of your framed pieces are identical in size a grid pattern layout is extremely dramatic. It can be tricky getting all of your pieces lined up straight, but the result is a simple, unified arrangement. If your collection has a variety of different objects, frame sizes and frame styles then an asymmetrical arrangement is your best option. These layouts are more difficult to organize on the wall, but result in a very personal display that is charming and more casual.

Photo courtesy of West Elm via Apartment therapy

Before hammering into your wall, arrange all of your pieces on the floor and create a layout that is balanced. Then start in the center of the composition and hang that piece first. The center should hang at around 5’ off the ground at eye level. Then, piece by piece hang the other pieces moving from the center outwards. Sometimes it is very useful to draw a plan of the arrangement which measures the spaces between each item so that you have a reference point. Be prepared that you may need to make more then one nail hole to get it just right!

Photo courtesy of  Steven Gambrel via Coco + Kelly

The trick to laying out an asymmetrical arrangement is to have a common axis which the pieces are lined up on. Lining up the frames along the bottom is a great way of keeping some order to the chaos. When displaying a collection on a staircase, the composition of frames should mimic the steps of the stairs. The above sketches featured on the blog Design Formula detail how this can be achieved.

Photo courtesy of Martha Stewart via Under a Paper Moon

Keep your frames close to one another. Depending on the arrangement, somewhere between the width of the frame and 5” is more then enough. The arrangement should read as one unit and limiting the spaces between the frames keeps the composition pulled together instead of looking scattered.

Photo courtesy Beth Webb via Desire to Inspire

If you are including family photographs keep in mind that you may want to add new photos to the grouping as your family grows up. Including frames that enable you to replace the photograph is a good way to accommodate for this. Another idea is to add more photos to the edges of the compositions at a later date.

Photo courtesy of  Domino Magazine via Under a Paper Moon

Gallery walls are interesting and showcase the personality of the homeowner. They can be delightful and quirky collections of photographs and beloved treasures or a dramatic grid creating repetition and rhythm. Have fun gathering your items together and creating your composition of favorite things!

Cheers!