By Chelsea Reed
Decorating your home with art can be as creative as the content in the artwork itself! You don’t have to do anything fancy to make it look good in a room, either. From paintings to sculptures, you can do these seven simple tricks to wow your guests and construct excellent conversation starters for your next social gathering.
1. Oversized Matting
Here’s something fun you can do with a miniature painting – frame it in a regular-sized frame with matting twice its size! Contrast is the key in this unusual technique, so choose something eye-catching with a sense of depth in the picture.
2. Play with Frames
Speaking of frames, you can coordinate mix-and-match frame styles with several pieces of artwork in the same room. Alternate between two or three different styles to create a recurring pattern with each piece displayed. Remember that these frame combinations are as unique as the art inside them, so choose carefully.
3. Or, Go Frameless!
You can also display your art the “frameless” way with an acrylic frame kit for a modern minimalistic look. This is a nice do-it-yourself project if you want to save money instead of buying more expensive frame kits. One trip to the hardware store and you’ll be good to go.
4. Get Creative with Color
Try displaying your art on walls with contrasting colors and plenty of room known as ‘negative space’ to make them the center of focus. Hang bold pieces around white rooms for an even more dramatic setting.
5. Decorate in Unexpected Places
Living and dining rooms are obvious places for art, but why not decorate your stairway or hall too? You can treat your guests to artwork in otherwise boring rooms that are commonly overlooked, such as an office nook, entryway, room corner, narrow hallway, and even the bathroom. If there’s space in your room, art can live there!
6. Trust the Traditional
If going “out of the box” isn’t your cup of tea you can always showcase your art in classical ways. Sculptures and ceramics on wall-hanging shelves are an attractive option, and paintings over fireplace mantels never go out of style.
7. Express Regional Culture
You certainly can’t go wrong with art that celebrates the region! Selecting décor that’s authentically “hoi toide on the sound soide” in your Outer Banks home, your home on the “mainland,” or a single room makes you feel like you’re there without leaving your house and it helps support local artists, too.
Experiment with these ideas to see how they work in your home. What’s your favorite from this list? Do you have an idea of your own? Feel free to share it with Seaside Art Gallery! You can also talk with Melanie at the Gallery to find out what her favorite ways to display artwork are. There is no ‘right’ or ‘wrong’ way to decorate with art due to its freedom of expression, so go for it! The possibilities are endless.
Chelsea Reed is a freelance copywriter and blogger. She writes articles, blogs, online content, press releases, websites, and is published in North America.
As we dust off 2024 and set our sights to the future, you might be wondering what will trend for the new year when it comes to art decor. Luckily, our friends at the Pantone Institute have already figured it out. Say hello to the 2025 Color of the Year: Mocha Mousse!
