If you use social media to stay on top of decor trends, you’ve likely stumbled upon the mighty gallery wall.
On the surface, these highly aesthetic ensembles of artwork may seem difficult to pull off, but the whole process becomes a lot easier when you don’t over-complicate things.
Keep scrolling if you need a helping hand in creating a gallery wall that will please anyone and everyone, as well as how to add your own personal spin.
1. Go floor to ceiling
There’s no volume of space that a gallery wall can’t fill. You are of course limited to the size of your art collection. But hey, that’s what thrift stores are for.
Assuming you have enough pieces to run an art gallery with, by all means go high and low.
This approach works particularly well in lofty interiors with tall ceilings, but it’s no less effective in more compact spaces that you want made extra cozy.
2. Mix little and large
When there’s a lot of different things going on in your gallery wall design, the eye has an absolute blast.
Run with different sized pictures and paintings to create a pretty pattern.
Make all your large pieces and small pieces of a similar size, set them out in an orderly configuration, and you’ll have yourself a wonderfully patterned gallery wall.
3. Synchronize at the bottom
What’s the best way to make a gallery wall that’s equal parts organic and clean-lined, we hear you ask?
Line up your pieces at the bottom to give the display a strong and stable foundation, and exhibit a variety of levels along the top.
When you stand back to take it all in, you will think you’re staring at a city skyline that’s been built with art!
4. Work with black and white
If the rest of the interior is adorned with colorful design elements, you’re allowed to tighten up on your gallery wall’s color scheme.
They say that black and white is timeless and we wholeheartedly agree.
Gather together your best monochrome photos and family portraits, amalgamate them above key furniture like the sofa or bed, and you’ll have a truly commanding display on your hands.
5. Play with orientation
A successful gallery wall encapsulates your personal style. To this end, ask yourself what kind of visuals get your heart rate going and take it from there.
Maybe you love the drama that comes with the unpredictable, in which case make certain to use both landscape and portrait orientations in your display.
It’s a good habit to get into because when you start pairing up, you risk making the overall design look disjointed.
6. Throw in some baskets
You always earn bonus styling points when you’re able to punctuate a smooth wall, so don’t be afraid to add in items with a three-dimensional quality.
Baskets are perfect for the novices out there, as they look and feel right at home wherever you put them, and the wall is no exception.
In the unlikely event that your gallery wall still doesn’t pop off the wall, just decorate the baskets with things like beads and greenery.
7. Decorate with empty frames
You’d think you would need actual imagery to drive the aesthetic appeal of a gallery wall, but it turns out a collection of nothingness can generate just as much interest.
Indeed, empty frames lend themselves as super captivating wall decor, as we’re so used to seeing them filled with masterpieces.
You can always weave in a couple of framed mirrors if you feel the display is lacking depth and dimension.
8. Start with the center
The prevailing wisdom is to lay out your design on the floor first to get a good sense of how things will look once wall-hung, but sometimes a lack of planning can deliver the best results.
As long as the largest piece is in the very center of the gallery wall, giving the eye a clear focal point to hone in on, you can build out from there without rhyme or reason and end up with a decidedly organic arrangement.
9. Get in formation
Everybody goes on and on and on about natural-looking, ‘organic’ art arrangements, but there’s no rule against shaping your gallery wall.
Since most walls are wider than they are tall, you could increase the wingspan of your design by adding pieces on each side in descending order of size, creating a cool symmetrical shape in the process.
10. Try out a clipboard gallery wall
Look away now if you’re an art purist! Whether you like it or not, everything qualifies as art, which is why the possibilities for your gallery wall are literally endless.
Gallery walls comprised of clipboards are an excellent case in point and very much on-trend at the moment.
They keep everyone happy no matter what your stance is, because even though clipboards as wall decor is a unique idea, you can still use them to display artwork.
11. Stagger your art arrangement
When arranging two pictures on the wall, it’s a good idea to hang one lower than the other. This is because we warm to things that look imperfect, making our homes feel comfier as a result.
With a gallery wall, you can increase that comforting feel by tenfold. It’s just a case of rinsing and repeating the formula above.
No two consecutive pieces should be level at the top or bottom – stagger them against each other and your display will get more and more organic with each new piece.
12. Lean it against the wall
Not everyone is comfortable handling a hammer. And some people are renters who don’t have permission to drill holes in the walls.
Not to worry, because you can lean your gallery wall instead of hanging it!
Select a range of artwork in every shape, size and medium, and layer them on top of one another on a picture ledge. The best part is you can change and update your display on a whim.
13. Use different frame types
We’ve said it before and we will say it over and over again: diversity is the spice of life. So let your gallery wall be the spice of yours!
If the works you’ve selected aren’t quite diverse enough, and you don’t have the budget to curate a new collection, simply randomize the picture frames instead.
Play with color for instant effect, and by all means switch between patterned and smooth frames for added interest.
14. Aim for continuity
Yes, eclectic displays are a feast for the eyes and will transform a big blank wall with immediate effect, but you have to draw the line somewhere.
The key is to offer some form of regularity so that your gallery wall has at least a hint of cohesion.
We suggest targeting the small details like using the same picture frames in the same color, as having a display where all the images are the same is clearly going to suck the fun out of the aesthetic.
15. Free-flow around objects
Much like using wall art to disguise a television, you can generate heaps of visual interest by letting your gallery wall interact with its surroundings.
Although, rather than setting out to ‘hide’ something, use your display to acknowledge any nearby objects such as a mirror or couch and free-flow around them.
It doesn’t really get more organic than that, almost as if your gallery wall is on the move.
16. Create a themed gallery wall
You simply can’t go wrong putting together a gallery wall that reflects your passions in life. It’s a great way to give people an insight into who you are when they visit for the first time.
For example, you could show off a love for global trotting with a travel-inspired display, complete with travel photos, aeroplane wall stickers and a bulletin board in the shape of your favorite destination, and which can be continuously updated as you go from one adventure to the next.
17. Highlight individual pieces
Yet again, the picture frame is a key ingredient in a successful gallery wall, as you can use thick frames to individualize certain pieces from the rest of the group.
Maybe you want to highlight your favorite piece, give extra oomph to a quiet image, add some dimension to the overall look – whatever your reason, utilizing thick frames alongside thin ones is going to help grab people’s attention.
18. Choose a grid layout
Some might argue that gridded gallery walls look stiff, sterile and something you’d see in a retail environment.
But hey, if that’s the case then you have a display that’s begging to be browsed.
Grid layouts are tricky to pull off because it requires mathematical precision for a uniform finish – if one piece is out of kilt with the rest, you’ve defaced the wall – so get to grips with the tape measure and spirit level beforehand.
19. Make an invisible shape
When all the pieces of a composition fit together like a puzzle, it ends up reading as one larger piece. This is a really good compromise if your stance on organic arrangements is somewhere in the middle.
It’s all about sticking to a clearly defined outline for your gallery wall, while keeping it wild at its core in terms of size, orientation and placement.
It may not be up there with the most exciting designs, but there’s something poetic about using geometric shapes to make a larger geometric shape.
20. Wow with a mirror gallery wall
If you still insist on populating a galley wall with artwork, you obviously haven’t seen what a hit squad of mirrors can do.
Knowing that one single mirror can make a space feel noticeably brighter and more spacious, it follows that an entire reflective wall is going to bring big energy.
It gets better, as mirror frames are treasure troves themselves, which means you can jazz up your wall with ornate designs and gorgeous materials.
21. Go frame to frame
It’s nice to give your artwork some breathing space as this allows the viewer to enjoy one piece at a time. But the beauty of gallery walls is in the bigger picture and that’s how you should approach your design.
Do away with wide berths and go all in with close-knit clusters. This way, the eye has an easier time browsing over the display on a macro level.
And not to mention, going frame to frame means that any contrast between the images are more readily apparent.
22. Color coordinate
The whole point of a feature wall is to look distinct from every other wall, but it doesn’t hurt to create a design that harmonizes with the rest of the space in some shape or form.
Color is perhaps the easiest way to tie a room together because our eyes love registering the different hues and tones on offer.
With that said, evaluate the surroundings and let that inform how you use color in your gallery wall for a cohesive scheme.
23. Break up hard lines with round decor
Whether you alternate between portrait and landscape, squares and rectangles, your gallery wall is going to be dominated by straight lines.
This is perfectly fine in most scenarios, but if variety is your thing then it’s time to break those lines.
Since round wall art hasn’t really established itself in the home decor scene, you’re much better off chucking in a few trusty mirrors to get the job done.
24. Camouflage your TV
Everything is hunky-dory when the TV is on and you’re glued to your favorite show. But as soon as you hit the off button, the scheme is ruined by that big black box.
You can remedy this with ease by styling your gallery wall in a particular way. Surround the TV with large-scale pieces in a black and white theme, and all of a sudden the TV set fades into obscurity.
That’s just one of many solutions for decorating around the TV.