Living Room, Morning, 2021
Sophie Treppendahl
Johansson Projects
From fixtures and frames to creating a visual thread with a group of artworks, hanging an art collection involves thorough planning and careful consideration. What do collectors need to consider when it comes to hanging their artworks in the best way? Artsy brought together the expert advice of art installers, an interior designer, and a gallery director to explain the ins and outs of the process.
First and foremost, the space where you decide to hang an artwork is pivotal. This may involve assessing the size, physical obstacles, and visual flow of a chosen space.
“Collectors should firstly be aware of the size of the artworks in relation to the space that they are planning to hang them in,” said Guy Morey, operations director at Momart, an art installation service based in London. “Take measurements of your walls as well as the narrowest point of entry into the building. Occasionally, especially with contemporary artworks, collectors buy pieces that are too big to fit through doorways, or are too imposing for a domestic setting.”
Thoroughly planning the arrangement of your artworks ahead of hanging is highly recommended. A collector can work with the installer to get all the works into the building and lean them against the wall, holding them up to decide on which arrangement feels best. Some installers can even use 3D modeling software to make a precise plan. When deciding how to group certain works together, there are some general rules about the height for hanging an artwork.
“Consider using a consistent center-line across all the artworks that you choose to hang in a room,” said Morey. “The center line that you choose is a personal choice, but it’s usually eye-level in a room or 120 centimeters from the ceiling to the center of the artwork.”
Center lines will undoubtedly change depending on the size of a given artwork. “You might choose to group smaller works together around a center line, whereas much larger works might be hung on their own and may not be able to be centered,” advised Morey.
Patron's Home (Miami), 2022
Andy Dixon
Over the Influence
Lighting is a further consideration for the placement of an artwork in any given space. “When arranging artwork in various interiors, thinking about where natural light might hit an artwork is important from a preservation perspective,” explained interior designer Verity Woolf, director of Woolf Interiors. “Some clients might also consider how to artificially light their collection using light fixtures.” Some collectors, for instance, use lights that are concealed within ceilings that can be arranged and adjusted to the size of an artwork.
Frame choice is another important aesthetic choice to consider. “Framing is an art in its own right,” Woolf said. “It is vital to take your time when choosing frames for your artworks. We have reframed pieces if they are somehow diminished by the frame, and works take on different meanings and narratives with a different frame.”
Paying attention to fixings is a technical detail that will also make a crucial difference to the way your collection is hung in a space.
John Paul Black, managing director of Art Works Exhibition Services, advises collectors to have a “hanging system” in place to move artworks around a space. “Aluminum rails that can be hidden in the top cornice of a room with hanging wires to fix artworks to the wall would be a good system for this; you just need the correct fittings on the back of the frame,” Black recommended. “This may also be useful if some works require ‘rest’ periods in storage and [being] out of the way of sunlight at a certain time of year.”
Unlike when hanging artworks in a gallery, in private and domestic settings there is less space and more obstacles. Furniture in a room, or various hazards like radiators and fireplaces that can damage an artwork, may also throw off the center-line and placement of an artwork in a room.
“Don’t forget to consider the furniture around your art,” Ben Cotton, director of Hang-Up Gallery in London, told Artsy. “Artworks and furniture should complement each other in a space. You are unlikely to be living in an art gallery set up where pictures are hung at set heights, so embrace your space and hang accordingly. A picture placed too high or too low in relation to furniture can throw off the balance.”
The arrangement of your collection will determine the mood and flow of a room. Collectors should not only consider their artworks in relation to a room’s interiors, but also find common visual threads between the artworks themselves. “This could be a shared color palette, a similar theme or genre, or even the same artist,” Cotton explained. “When you are able to recognize these connections, you will appreciate the collection as a whole, rather than just the individual pieces. The goal is to create a cohesive narrative that guides the viewer through the collection.”
from Artsy News https://ift.tt/GXvSfHm
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