No matter if you are an art collector or an art lover, there comes a time where you have a lovely collection of paintings ranging from traditional Indian paintings to contemporary paintings and you fall short of ideas about how to arrange them. Don’t fret; we are here for your rescue. There are lot of arrangements that can be considered based on picture size, frame style, theme and symmetry. To begin with, let us take a look at some different approaches that you can adopt to arrange you paintings.
Linear and Ladder Formation
What it is: Pictures are arranged either in a line or ladder like formation. This style stresses on rhythm and steadiness.
Highpoints:Paintings that are of same size and are framed in same frames are best suited for this type of arrangement. If you opt for ladder formation, you can experiment with paintings of different size and arrange them in ascending or descending order in terms of size.You can arrange your collection of contemporary art paintings in this formation to accentuate your walls or staircase. Arranging paintings in a linear or ladder formation is a good option to highlight a larger wall. When arranged on a background wall against other horizontal elements, like seating arrangement, in the room, then such formations help to accentuate these elements.
Limitations: You are restricted by dimensions of the wall and number of paintings you want to arrange. For e.g. if you want to arrange five paintings in a linear or ladder formation, but you don’t have enough room, then this arrangement won’t work for you.
Grid
What it is: It is an array of paintings arranged either horizontally or vertically. The precise rows and columns of grid focus on achieving symmetry.
Highpoints: As this arrangement emphasizes on symmetry, it becomes important that paintings are of same size and are framed in same frame. You can use grid formation to exhibit paintings that explore same theme. Figurative paintings and contemporary paintings are well suited for this style.
Limitations:Depending upon the size of the wall, you can add as many rows and columns as the wall can accommodate. Therefore, the only limitation is the dimension of the wall.
Clustered
What it is: A clustered formation lets you play with paintings and space. It brings out the artist in you. Though paintings are arranged in a clustered and haphazard way, still consistent distance is maintained between frames. This consistent distance lends this formation coherency and balance.
Highpoints: This approach serves as the best option to collectively display paintings of different sizes and different frames. The major plus point of this formation is that it can accommodate additional paintings even after installation. This arrangement is apt for showcasing different styles of paintings like abstract painting, elegant contemporary art paintings and landscape paintings.
Limitations: This approach does not have any such limitations. For aesthetic reasons, you should use same frames or at least frames of same thickness, otherwise it will lend an unsettling look to the wall.
On Shelves
What it is: As the name suggest, you don’t need to hang pictures on wall, but arrange them on shelf.
Highpoints: This style works best for clumsy persons like me, as you don’t have to hang paintings on walls in symmetry. Add multiple shelves to your wall and you are good to stock as many paintings as your shelves can hold. Plus, this arrangement gives you the option to change the paintings as and when you like.
Limitations:When it comes about installing a shelf, you have to consider the dimension of wall. While stacking shelves, do consider the height of the largest picture that you want to place on each shelf.
Solo Show
What it is: Works best for large paintings. It is a style where you hang a large artwork on wall.
Highpoint: An easy approach, where a single large painting becomes the focal point of a room. Bold abstract paintings and thought provoking contemporary paintings are tailored made artworks for this arrangement.
Limitations: The biggest limitations of this style are dimensions of the wall and weight of artwork. Before hanging a painting, you need to consider the dimensions of the wall and ensure that the painting is hung at the centre of the wall. Also, make sure that anchor hooks can take the weight of the artwork. You may consider taking the help of a professional to hang large paintings.
These are some of the arrangements that you can consider before displaying your artwork. You can either stick to the rules or can experiment; the choice is all yours.
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