IF you love art, will art love you back? The answer greatly depends on how you’ve been treating your artworks. First question that springs to mind is: Are your pictures properly hung?
A wealthy few will suffer their biggest problem in life, and this would be—to paraphrase and augment what has been attributed to the late great Duchess of Windsor—“moving the Gauguin one-fourth of an inch to the left.” Here are pointers on how to hang it all, nail it and make it look awesome on a wall.
THE 57-INCH RULE
Proper picture hanging can be turned into a simple, gratifying task by following the tip: Always hang your artwork at 57 inches on center. This means that the middle of the artwork is always at 57 inches above the floor, says a story on the subject by ApartmentTherapy.com. Apparently, the 57-inch standard represents the average human eye height and is used in many galleries and museums.
To achieve the 57-inch rule, simply follow these instructions posted by the web site:
- Measure and lightly mark 57 inches on the wall.
- Measure artwork height and divide by two. This gives you the center.
- Measure top of your picture to the tightened wire.
- Subtract “tight wire” amount from half the height amount for the “to the hook” amount. This will tell you how far above 57 inches your hook should go.
- Lightly mark the wall just above 57 inches with the “to the hook” amount.
For example:
- The picture is 20 inches tall.
- Middle is at 10 inches. This mid point should rest at 57 inches on the wall.
- Wire comes to 2 inches below the top.
- Compute: 10″ – 2″ = 8″
- Lightly mark 8 inches above your first mark, or 65 inches, on the wall.
ApartmentTherapy goes on to explain: “Though this may seem complicated to read, it is quite simple when you do it. The thing to always remember is that the center of all your pictures [should be] hanging at 57 inches, and you are just figuring out where the hook goes above it.
“This 57-inch rule also applies to groups of pictures. Think of a group as one picture. After you arrange how you want them all to hang, start with the center pictures and get them at 57 inches on center. Then surround them with the rest of the group.”
USE AT LEAST TWO HOOKS
How often do you see crooked art on a wall? If you’re like the blogger at Artshopnc.com, you probably have the urge to straighten everyone’s art. (Beware if you do this in other people’s homes, Artshopnc.com warns, because you might not get invited back.) The web site gives a tip on how to hang art: Use not one but at least two hooks.
“While it’s a little more time-consuming to hang with two hooks, it will save you the trouble of constantly having to straighten your pictures [or having your friends insult you by doing it for you], and the artwork is more secure on the wall since the weight is more evenly distributed.”
USE D-RINGS INSTEAD OF A WIRE
For the ultimate in picture hanging, Elle Decor’s Tim McKeough has the definitive tip: When possible, install two D-rings, rather than a wire, on the backs of frames, to hang from the picture hooks. “Then it’s stationary, and not swinging on a wire. There’s no pendulum effect involved.” He says that while installing D-rings might be a tougher choice, one must use a level and ruler to ensure that both the picture hooks and D-rings are aligned when installed.
Aside from these three major pointers, the most important tip all agree on is to have fun when hanging art, and not to worry too much about getting things perfect. No permanent damage after all is done to your walls, and you can correct mistakes easily and move pictures around to freshen things up in your home.
Image credits: Stephen Coles, Jinkazamah, Tambra