At what height should you hang pictures above the sofa? At what distance from the sofa should you hang a picture?

People have always strived to decorate their homes. Figurines, decorative panels, all kinds of vases with bouquets sometimes have no practical meaning, but they create a feeling of comfort and stability. Paintings or framed photographs are still popular. These can be originals, copies, reproductions. How to hang pictures on the wall? Options may vary. They will be discussed in our article.

To hang or not to hang?

Having wondered how to hang pictures on the wall beautifully, you will be surprised by the very idea that hanging them is not at all necessary. Frames with paintings can be arranged in different ways:

• hang;
• put on the floor;
• put on stretchers;
• place on a large but shallow shelf.

Hanging

The most popular option is, of course, the first. It has a lot of advantages:

• a picture hanging on the wall is quite difficult to damage;
• the work of art hangs quite securely;
• you can draw the attention of guests to a certain wall.

However, this method also has disadvantages:

1. You need to determine in advance exactly where the masterpiece will hang.
2. If you decide to change the interior, the paintings will have to be re-hung, and the places where they hung before will have to be repaired.

Important! If there are animals and small children in the house, pictures definitely need to be hung:

• A canvas can inspire a young artist to achieve creative achievements, so that before you know it, a completely different piece will appear in the frame.
• For cats and dogs, a picture standing on the floor also arouses genuine interest. They often perceive it as a scratching post or an object that they can chew with pleasure.

We don’t hang it, we put it

If adults live in the house, other options are possible. How to hang a large picture? You can simply place it on the floor. Small works can also be placed on stretchers.

This method of placement also has advantages:

• decorations can be rearranged;
• a kind of creative disorder is created in the room, testifying to the creative abilities of the owners.

The negative points include the fact that both options are suitable only for large rooms. Stretchers are extra pieces of furniture that need to be placed somewhere.

Important! The problem disappears if the painting is on the floor, but in this case you need to be very careful in choosing the color and subject - a well-chosen work can visually enlarge the room, but a poorly chosen one can do the opposite.

Room style

The answer to the question - to hang or put up, largely depends on the style in which your apartment is decorated:

• The fact is that the option of hanging on the walls is almost universal; it is suitable for rooms in the classical style, and for Provence, and for Minimalism. Basically, your kitchen or living room turns into a small museum - the works hang in rows or in beautiful groups, you can look at them for a long time.
• But canvases placed in the corners on stretchers are only suitable for interiors decorated in a style that imitates an art workshop, when the room is something like a Parisian attic or looks like a room filled with random things bought from a junk dealer.

Picture on the shelf

This option for hanging a picture is extremely good if there is a shallow niche on one wall. This is just a gift - it can be laid out with thin slats of beautiful wood, turning one of them into something like a very narrow shelf, on which one or several paintings are placed.

But you can also make a separate shelf. The main thing is that it should be high enough. You can put one relatively large work on it, or several small ones.

Important! You can also create an interesting composition by placing a large picture in the center and surrounding it with small ones hanging on the walls.

The third option is a shelf divided into several compartments, each of which houses a painting.

Types of artwork

Before you beautifully place pictures on the wall, it makes sense to think about what exactly you want to place:

• painting;
• graphics;
• straw panel;
• panels of plants;
• a scorched picture;
• embroidered fabric or panel made from shreds;
• icons;
• photos;
• reproductions;
• posters.

Let’s figure out what options there are and how to beautifully place the paintings:

• It is better to insert paintings and graphics into frames, as well as straw panels or floristry.
• A painting made on a board using the burning method does not need to be framed; it is best to beautifully design the natural cuts to emphasize the texture of the wood.
• If you want to hang a panel made of fabric, then, as they say, there are options.
• An embroidered landscape or still life with roses or lilacs is essentially no different from a painting painted with paints, so it is better to use a frame.
• But a panel made of scraps or a large tapestry will look great on a bar, which is attached only from above and from which, in fact, the picture is hung.
• Photos may be framed or unframed. A very large photo panel can be glued directly to the wall or placed on a tablet of the same size.
• Posters are most often used in the manner of photo wallpapers.

Subjects

Any element of the interior, be it a sofa, an armchair, a wardrobe, a vase or a landscape on the wall, must not only correspond to the overall style, but also create a feeling of security for the inhabitants. First of all, you should like the paintings.

Bad ideas

There are other things to avoid when choosing a plot:

• there should be no aggressive scenes on your walls;
• You should not post images of very elderly people if they are not your favorite relatives;
• Still lifes that depict broken dishes are not suitable.

Important! Scenes of murders, fires, natural disasters, and wild animals fighting create a feeling of anxiety, even if you don't realize it. Psychics call this negative energy, psychologists call it the impact of negative phenomena on the senses. Be that as it may, such scenes in a peaceful apartment are completely unnecessary.

A portrait of an unknown old man, as well as a still life depicting a broken jug, can put you in a philosophical mood, but do you want your loved ones to constantly think about the frailty of all earthly things? The only exception is your beloved great-grandfather, a kind spirit who protects your hearth.

What stories are suitable?

A lot depends on where exactly you plan to hang the pictures:

• in the living room;
• in the bedroom;
• in the nursery;
• in the kitchen;
• in the hall;
• in the bathroom.

Living room and bedroom:

• In principle, everything can hang on the wall in the living room. Genre scenes depicting gallant scenes, sea and mountain landscapes, images of noble animals, and still lifes with flowers are suitable. The scenes depicted can be dynamic, because here people are doing interesting things, talking, celebrating holidays.
• Calm views of nature will look best in the bedroom. This room was created specifically for relaxation; there should be nothing disturbing or stimulating unhealthy thoughts. Abstract paintings are also appropriate in rooms for adults.

Important! You should not place paintings next to each other that are very different in mood.

Children's

As for the nursery, then:

• Illustrations for favorite books or scenes from interesting cartoons are suitable for a preschooler. In this case, reproductions can be used. Developmental panels are also suitable.
• If a schoolchild lives in the room, there may be photo wallpapers and posters on the walls with sports scenes, space and seascapes, dedicated to scientific discoveries - in a word, everything depends on the interests of the occupant.

Important! The only thing to avoid is abstractions.

Kitchen and bathroom

Water landscapes are simply perfect for these rooms. By the way, they are recommended not only by psychologists, but also by those who follow the traditions of Feng Shui. It is believed that rivers and streams will definitely attract cash flows into the house.

Genre scenes depicting meals, still lifes with food and beautiful dishes will look good on the kitchen wall. In the bathroom there are sea scenes, fish, dolphins and other inhabitants of the depths.

Important! There is high humidity in the bathroom, so it is better to hang decorative tile panels rather than paintings.

Big or small?

Before hanging pictures on the wall, decide whether it will be one large picture or a group of small ones. There are several reasons why in a modern apartment you should not overuse paintings covering the entire wall:

1. Such paintings have quite a lot of weight, which requires the use of powerful fasteners.
2. Originals, even if they were created by amateur artists, are quite expensive.
3. As a rule, the subjects of such paintings are heavy or aggressive, which does not contribute to creating a peaceful, calm environment in the house.

Important! If you absolutely need to decorate the entire surface of the wall, choose several small or medium-sized elements. They can be hung close to each other, but the composition will still look light and elegant.

How to place paintings on the wall?

There are several rules to follow, regardless of whether you have one picture hanging or several:

1. Everything that hangs on the walls should be in harmony with each other and with other objects.
2. Groups of paintings or photographs are best placed closer to the furniture, visually creating a square.
3. If the ceilings are very high, you can make a rectangular group of four, six or eight elements, placing them very close to each other.
4. If you want to create a window effect, use thin, light-colored frames, wooden or metal.

How to hang pictures on the wall if there are a lot of them?

The most difficult, but at the same time interesting option is to hang many paintings of different sizes. There are two possible principles:

• symmetric;
• asymmetric.

What to give preference to?

With symmetry everything is simple. When thinking about how to properly hang pictures of different sizes, keep in mind that the asymmetrical option is more difficult. You need to choose a central canvas, and hang works of the same size in pairs on both sides. In this case, size and color are more important than subjects.

Asymmetry is another matter. Of course, in this case, the largest work is often hung in the center of the group, but this is not at all necessary. For example, there may be the following options:

• on the left is a large picture, on the right are several small ones, or vice versa;
• a large picture above or below a group of small ones;
• all the paintings are arranged in a “chaotic” order, which is actually carefully thought out).

Important! With an asymmetrical arrangement, it is very important that the works are close in plot.

What to consider

Having decided on the quantity, frames and subjects, do not forget to consider a few more points:

• lighting;
• height;
• orientation;
• grouping.

Lighting

You have probably been to museums many times and seen that a special lamp hangs above each painting or graphic work. There is no point in following this principle at home. It is necessary to provide good natural lighting.

Important! Backlighting is only needed if natural light produces glare or if you want to draw attention to a specific work of art. In this case, LED lamps should be used.

Grouping

You don't have to hang all the pictures on the same wall. It won't be very good. It is best to distribute them evenly, but it is necessary to take into account the conditional “weight”:

• If a large painting hangs in one corner, it should be balanced by several smaller paintings located on the other wall.
• If there is a dark painting on one wall, the other should have the same color, not a light one.

Important! You can also use a trellis arrangement - when the paintings hang close to each other. This method is suitable for both works of the same size and different ones. Artworks of the same size can also be hung in rows at equal distances from each other.

At what height should I hang a picture on the wall?

Any painting in the room should be clearly visible, that is, hang at such a height that it can be easily seen. It is also necessary to take into account the distance between the walls:

1. Measure the long side of the fabric.
2. Multiply it by three - this will be the distance to the viewer.
3. Mark the desired distance on the tape measure.
4. Determine the point where the viewer will be.
5. Using a tape measure, find the place on the wall where you want the picture to hang - it will be approximately at eye level.

Orientation

Most often, paintings are horizontal. If you are not going to group them, keep two things in mind:

• a vertical picture visually increases the height of the ceiling:
• horizontal - can visually lengthen the wall.

Based on this, choose a place:

• It is better to hang vertical canvases in narrow walls or in spaces between pieces of furniture.
• When thinking about how to properly hang pictures above the sofa, keep in mind that it is best to choose works in horizontal frames.

Tilt angle

There are two options for placing paintings on the wall:

• close to the surface;
• inclined.

Usually the first option is used. The second is acceptable if it is not possible to hang the picture at eye level. In the first case, the rope is tightened tightly, in the second, it is loosened.

Important! In a group of three paintings, the middle canvas is the main one.

Hanging pictures

No need to immediately grab the drill:

1. Create a composition on the floor.
2. Measure the distances between jobs.
3. Determine the point from which it is best to view them.
4. Mark on the wall a place where the center of the composition will be.
5. Put a period there.
6. From this point, set off the distances to the remaining paintings.
7. Install the fasteners:
   • for small paintings, finishing nails will be sufficient;
   • Large works hanging at an angle are best placed on brackets.

A few words about the background

It is important how the walls you are going to decorate look like. Their surface can be:

Having dealt with all the nuances and all the options for how you can hang pictures on the wall, you only have one more time, and maybe more than once, to look at your room, at the pictures, and then try to correlate it all into one artistic line, taking into account the received information. I wish you creative success in decorating the interior of your apartment!

When purchasing a painting you like with an intricate plot or a luxurious canvas, you need to carefully select the right height to place it in the interior. And if you miss some nuances, you can greatly harm the visual perception of the picture, as well as easily distort the image.

• Pictures and photographs of small size or with small figures should be hung too high. After all, the point of correct placement is to easily contemplate the plot of a work of painting or print.
• Awkward placement. Very often you can observe the following situation: without particularly caring about some of the rules, we hang canvases and photos in the wrong places at the wrong height. For example, a spectacular colorful picture hangs below eye level, and even in a dark part of the room, and an inconspicuous small picture is in the most visible place.

Below we will give good examples of the correct height for placing paintings of different sizes, shapes and contents.

Aligning to the top edge of a door or window

An interesting and quite effective way of placing paintings in the interior is to hang them at the same level with the upper edge of the doorway or its frame, as well as at the level of the upper horizontal line of the window frame. This technique allows you to balance the lower and upper parts of the room, especially if the furniture in it is bright or large.

• Should be used:

In this case, the height of the location is important, so we advise you to hang large pictures so that the bottom edge touches the midline of the wall. Choose canvases with a clear plot or, conversely, abstract forms that are clearly perceived only from a distance.

• Not recommended:

It is better not to place small paintings with small, unclear designs at such a significant height, as this will doubly complicate visual perception and add tension to the neck muscles.

Alignment to the top edge of cabinets

This method can simplify the task of arranging paintings in the interior, since the top horizontal line of a cabinet or shelving can serve as a height reference here. Place the picture on the wall so that its top edge is flush with the top edge of the cabinet.

• Should be used:

If the cabinet or rack in the interior is large, or it occupies the entire wall from ceiling to floor, then it is better to use vertical, bright and massive paintings along the entire wall. This will help maintain the dimensions of the storage furniture.

When cabinets form horizontal lines, such as the kitchen furniture in the photo below, it is better to hang a picture of the same horizontal shape, making sure that its top edge coincides with the top of the hanging cabinets.

Horizon alignment

The most common and common height in placing paintings is the so-called horizon line, which is always at eye level. It is most favorable for the visual perception of paintings, photographs and other decorative objects, arranged in such a way as not to cause difficulties while contemplating the objects.

• Should be used:

The height at eye level is equally good for placing independent canvases and for forming compositions from photographs and paintings. It also creates a certain harmony and completeness in the interior.

When placing paintings along the horizon line on two or three opposite or adjacent walls at the same time, make sure that the horizontal line of the bottom edge of all paintings is located at the same height from the floor. Otherwise, an imbalance may occur in the interior.

Align to the bottom edge of the window

This method is good when the windows and doors in the house are very large or too high. And paintings should be hung in such a way that their lower edge coincides with the lower edge of a high window (we do not take into account French floor-to-ceiling windows).

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It happens that the lower edge of the window is located quite high, as, for example, in basement rooms or attics. It is then that the correct height for the picture is the lower edge of the window frame.

By choosing the right height for placing pictures on the wall, you can improve the overall appearance of the interior, bringing harmony to the decor of the room.

It would seem a simple thing to do - hang a picture on the wall. But are we hanging them correctly? Of course, there are certain rules, but many, unfortunately, do not know them. Let me help you with this a little.

Illumination of paintings

Most experts believe that the painting looks best in good natural lighting. But, in some cases, paintings still need to be additionally illuminated. Firstly, if this place is poorly lit. Secondly, if glare appears in the picture from the general light in the room. Thirdly, if you just need to focus on one or more paintings. Proper placement of picture lighting fixtures is very important and there are several factors to consider. The maximum permissible illumination for paintings is 150 lux. The light should fall from one side, narrowly directed, and on the other, be uniform over the entire lighting area. Under no circumstances should lamps be placed too close to the painting. The fact is that they have not yet invented lamps that do not heat up during operation. Changes in temperature and humidity have a detrimental effect on works of art. Additional lighting should not distort the color scheme of the canvas, otherwise the artist’s intention will be distorted.

The type of lamp in the lamp can be different, but the incandescent lamp is least suitable for this. During operation of such a lamp, the lighting intensity changes greatly, and the efficiency is very small. Halogen lamps are more suitable. Having a small size, they provide a uniform luminous flux. You can use fluorescent lamps or LED.

Height of paintings

There are no strict rules here, however, the main criterion is convenience. If in order to examine the picture you need to lift your head high, or vice versa, you need to bend over strongly, this is definitely wrong. Typically, paintings are arranged in one row at eye level, and most of the painting, from this level, should be located above.

Optimal distance for viewing paintings

It all depends on what technique the author followed. If this is a smooth writing technique, then of course you need to get closer to see the details. Well, if the impressionist author painted with large strokes, then it is better to view the picture from a distance three times greater than the long side of the picture.

Which picture looks better - vertical or horizontal?

It all depends on where you are going to hang it. The horizontal one looks good above the sofa, and the vertical one in a narrow opening. There is one rule: everything horizontal visually “eats” the height, everything vertical increases it.

Angle of the painting

Usually a picture is hung on the wall so that it hangs close to each other. For this, one fulcrum is necessary and sufficient, roughly speaking, one nail. In this case, the rope is attached to the baguette as high as possible. If you want the picture to hang at an angle, then the rope attachment should be lower than the middle of the baguette. You don’t have to overhang the rope; in this case, it is necessary that the picture not only hangs, but also stands on some kind of support. The minimum is two more nails on which the baguette will stand.

Grouping of paintings

If there are a lot of pictures, then they are grouped according to the following principle. The most valuable painting, dear to you, is hung in the center, the rest are around it. You can make several groups, but they must be made in the same style, on the same theme and in the same color scheme. Do not forget that if a group consists of three paintings, then the central one attracts more attention.

The paintings are the same size and approximately the same theme; there is no better option to place them in one row. But it is possible to place them in several rows and even in a checkerboard pattern. If the painting is quite large, with a massive frame, it is advisable not to “shade” it with nearby furniture, no matter how luxurious it is. Just as a castle will not look good in a dense urban area, just as a chic painting will not look good next to a closet, for example.

If there are really a lot of paintings, then a dense arrangement of them on the wall is possible; this method is called trellis hanging, when the paintings cover almost the entire area of ​​the wall.

Placing paintings is quite a labor-intensive and responsible moment, so try mentally, or with the help of friends, to hang the paintings on the wall and only then start fixing them. You can try to do this first on a computer, virtually. To do this, take a photo of the wall and take pictures of the paintings, then use Photoshop or another program to try hanging them. You cannot place pictures “by height” - this is bad taste, an apartment is not an army, so you should place them in descending order.

Examples of how to hang groups of paintings on the wall

Baguette

It is not at all necessary that the baguette in all paintings be the same. The main thing is that it fits the picture. Well, no matter what in the group he stands out from the general row.

Fashion trends

Recently it has become fashionable to place paintings on a music stand or easel. It looks beautiful, of course. But, if you have never picked up paints, you still shouldn’t do this. This somewhat offends the feelings of real artists.

Backlight

An important element when placing paintings is lighting. Most experts agree that the best lighting for paintings is good illumination of the entire room, but some paintings may require additional lighting. This may be due to insufficient lighting of this place, the appearance of glare from the general light, or simply the desire to emphasize a particular picture or group of pictures. The lamp must be positioned so that the light falls evenly on the picture, without creating glare or shadows. For illumination, it is best to use LED lamps; unlike halogen lamps, they do not heat up and, with their small size, create a good, directional flow of light that does not distort the color scheme of the picture. At the same time, we should not forget about the safety of the painting: the maximum illumination of the painting is 150 lux, a 100W incandescent lamp or a 20W fluorescent lamp should be placed no closer than one meter from the object (200W - about 2 meters, etc.)

Height

Paintings should not be placed too high; they should be hung on the wall so that it is comfortable to look at them. We offer you a universal technique for hanging pictures. For horizontally elongated paintings, you need to draw an imaginary straight line, stepping back 2-3 cm from the bottom edge of the painting (namely the painting, not the baguette), and place the painting on the wall so that this straight line is at your eye level. For vertical paintings: for high ceilings the same principle applies, and for low ceilings - draw an imaginary straight line at a distance of 6 cm above the edge.

Distance

How to determine the optimal distance for viewing paintings? For paintings written in the style (large strokes), there is a rule: you need to take the size of the largest side of the picture and multiply by 3, the resulting amount is the minimum distance for the best viewing of this picture.

Which painting to choose - vertical or horizontal?

It is necessary to take into account that vertical paintings visually enlarge the ceilings, while horizontal paintings “lengthen” the wall. Horizontal paintings fit well above a sofa, bed, chest of drawers, etc.; vertical - on a narrow wall.

Tilt angle

If you want your picture to hang close to the wall, then tightly tighten the fastening rope on the picture (like a bow string). And if you want it to hang at an angle to the wall, loosen the rope (the weaker the tension and lower the fastening loop, the greater the angle of inclination) and move the fastening lower.

Grouping of paintings

• If there is a large wall in the room, but the paintings are small, then it is better to place them in groups, organized around the painting that you like best. The group should consist of paintings that are similar in style, theme or color scheme. For example, it could be a series of watercolors or batik, or a combination of oil and watercolor, united by a single theme and color scheme. It is necessary to take into account that in a group of three paintings, the middle painting is the main one that attracts your attention.
• For paintings of the same size, the simplest placement option is: in one row, at the same distance from each other. But it’s much better and more interesting when they hang at different levels.
• Some paintings, usually those painted in the old classical technique, in a massive frame, require a large amount of wall space, such paintings cannot be limited by furniture or other works of art.
• There is also an old, time-tested method of grouping paintings - when almost the entire wall is covered with paintings.
• Do not place a group of paintings on the wall “in height” in order of increasing or decreasing size - this is a sign of bad taste.
• To avoid mistakes, many experts advise creating a composition from a group of paintings on the floor, and then transferring it to the wall.

Baguette

It is not necessary that a group of paintings be framed in the same baguette. If the baguette is correctly selected for each picture, then the whole group will look harmonious.

Placing a painting in the interior on a music stand or easel

Recently, the technique of placing a painting on a music stand or easel has become fashionable. A feeling of creativity and creation is created (as if the artist had just finished his work).

Paintings and photographs personalize your interior, making it unique and inimitable. But many beginners are faced with a problem: how to hang everything beautifully so that it looks stylish and organized?

Our designers know the answer: Center of the picture(or compositions from paintings) should be located strictly at a height of 145 cm from the floor. The hook itself, of course, will be located a little higher.

The height of 145 cm is the average height of the human gaze. What is noteworthy is that it is at this distance from the floor that all paintings are hung in galleries and museums.

We have observed more than once that many clients hang art much higher on their own. And this creates the feeling that the painting or photograph is “hovering” in the air. It is inconvenient to look at, all guests have to lift their heads.

If you choose the right height (and this is exactly 145 cm), then the painting fits harmoniously into the overall interior and is in line with lamps, furniture, bookshelves and decorative items. And this is very good!

Here's a step-by-step guide:

1. Measure 145 cm from the floor and place a barely visible mark on the wall.

2. Measure the height of the painting and divide it by 2 - this will give you its center. (let's call the resulting height h1)

3. Measure to what height from the center of the picture the cord reaches (this is the height h2)

4. Subtract the height of the lace (h2) from half the height of the picture (h1). This will give you the distance at which you need to nail the nail or hook (h3).

5. Now measure the height h3 from the first mark on the wall.

Let's look at an example:

1. Mark on the wall 145 cm from the floor

2. The height of the painting is 50cm. So half of it is 25 cm. This is our height h1.

3. The string reaches a distance of 5 cm below the top of the picture.

4. 25 - 5 = 20cm.

5. Mark a height of 20cm above the first mark on the wall or 165cm from the floor.

The same rule applies to compositions from paintings or photographs. Look at a group of paintings as ONE painting. First, decide what the future composition will look like. It's best to do this on the floor. Next, take the central picture and hang it so that it center was at a height of 145 cm from the floor. And only after that do you hang the rest of the pictures.