How to Hang Artwork on Your Walls
I love hanging artwork. It’s like unwrapping a present when you stand back from a previously bare wall and view its new adornments. I also really dig going to other people’s homes and seeing how they’ve arranged art on their walls - their choice of display speaks to who they are and how they view the world.
I understand that hanging wall art can feel like a huge undertaking. There are may ways to do it, and how you choose to proceed will depend on:
Other objects in the room
The number of artwork pieces you have
There are also many different hanging styles - some people prefer tighter groupings in a gallery wall, when images are meant to play off on another, and some pieces command more space to themselves. It doesn’t have to be perfect - a little quirkiness adds personality to your space. Here’s how to get started :
These are your friends. Your eyes can play tricks on you and it’s better to get it right the first time.
Here’s a trick: if you hang something with a wire on the back at the wrong height - tighten or loosen the wire accordingly, to hang the work lower or higher, depending.
The average viewing height (the eye-level of your average human being) is 54 - 60 inches, so that should be the center of your piece.
When hanging artwork above furniture, aim for the bottom of the piece to be between 6 - 10 inches above the back of your couch, to tie it in with the room.
Although fireplaces tend to have empty space above them, please, don’t hang any artwork above your fireplace - heat will slowly destroy it.
These numbers are just starting points and YOUR height and preferences will dictate where your artwork will ultimately hang.
Now that you have an idea of WHERE to hang art, here’s HOW to find where to position it on a wall. I would suggest getting some kraft paper and cutting out pieces that are the same size as your frames. I’m linking you to this article, because it explains where to actually nail your holes into the wall. Here’s a quick primer and some of my own advice:
Find the center of the wall. Mark it with your pencil.
Find 60 inches from the bottom of the wall. Mark it with your pencil.
This helps you remember the basic anchor points if you lose track of the math.
For simplicity’s sake, I’m going to pretend you’re hanging one piece of artwork. The link above will help you with more complicated hanging. I’ll use numbers so you can follow along:
measure the height of your artwork (20 inches high)
divide the height of your artwork by 2 (20 / 2 =10 inches)
measure the distance of the hanging point (the wire on the back of the artwork or any other fixture on the back of the work) to the top of the artwork (5 inches)
add half of the height of your artwork to 60 inches (60 + 10 = 70 inches)
subtract the wire height (70 - 5 = 65)
Mark this spot on your wall (65 inches) and that’s where the bottom of your wire hanging hook will go
Nail a hole through the hanging hook, put your artwork on the hook, step back and enjoy!
For more complicated hanging jobs, you may want to enlist the help of another person, especially if artwork is heavy.
After a while, you’ll get a feel for the numbers and this process will become like second nature to you. I promise, it gets easier and it’s fun! Cheers to you for braving the art-hanging storm.
As I mentioned at the beginning of this post, I’m always interested in seeing artwork configurations in other people's homes, so show me your walls!