I’ve always loved having art in my home. Art helps to create a home’s soul, and puts your personality into the house. And let’s face it, bare walls can be quite boring! A lovely artwork visually helps to create a feeling of movement compared to everything else in the room that is static, adding instant colour and pizazz. From there you can add complimentary colours in things like the rugs, cushions and lamps creating a truly finished look. Here I’ve put together some tips to remember when choosing art for your house.
Setting the tone
Before you select your art, decide whether you want your home to have a casual or formal vibe. Light and bright colours give off a casual feel, particularly on unframed canvas. Whereas a framed piece with images featuring distinct lines and structure in darker colours will create a formal tone.
Selecting the style of artwork
What you choose to put on your walls is a very personal choice, however don’t rush into it. Ask yourself what appeals about a piece – is it the colour, subject or something else? Don’t just go on your gut instinct as an instant impulse buy can be a mistake. View it again in an hour’s time or the next day. If you still love it, then get it because you’ve made a connection with it. If you’re still unsure where to start, images inspired by nature are a good choice. In my recent collaboration with homewares site Urban Road I’ve created an art collection in a variety of different colours featuring things like patterns of butterfly scales, and moody skies and seas. You can really lose yourself gazing at those types of images.
Choosing colours
The colour of an artwork can influence the look of the whole room. If you want the art to show off a main colour, then everything around it has to support it. For example, if the artwork’s colour is warm, make sure the pieces around it are in cool colours because it will make it stand out more.
Picking the right frame
As a general rule black and white frames never go out of style and gold and silver are also stylish. While timber frames can work in a timber house, pay attention to your floors. A dark mahogany frame won’t look great in a house with blonde timber floors.
Size of artwork versus size of room
Generally, if you have a small room, one big piece of art can make a room feel bigger. Lots of smaller pieces can make a small room feel cluttered. Also if you have furniture like an entertainment unit that is 1500mm wide, go for an artwork above it that is 1200mm so the pieces “frame” each other.
Multiple artworks
If you’re keen to have more than one piece of art in a room, there should be a “hero” and a secondary piece. In our collection a bolder piece from the Papillion or Transcend selection works as the hero, whilst another from Fleeting Moments featuring things like calligraphy strokes, and lots of different colours would be good as a supporting piece.
Selecting artwork can at times be a fun case of trial and error to see what fits. Sometimes, despite doing everything right, you still won’t know if something will really work until the art is up in front of you. But remember if you change your mind, you can always take something down or move it to another room!
