Guides
Rules of thumb that designers use for size, height, color and printing, written for a homeowner.
Size and placement
- How High to Hang Pictures The 57-inch rule, and when to break it Where the center of a painting goes on a plain wall, above furniture, in a dining room and up a staircase.
- What Size Art Goes Above a Sofa Two thirds to three quarters of the sofa The width and height that suit sofas from 60 to 96 in, and the standard print sizes that land in range.
- What Size Art Goes Above a Bed Queen, king and full headboards Widths for each bed size, how far above the headboard to hang, and when a pair works better than one piece.
- Gallery Wall Layouts That Work Grid, salon, row and column Four layouts, the gaps between frames, and how to plan the whole block before a single nail goes in.
- Paintings Above a Fireplace The focal point of the room Width over the mantel, the gap above it, heat and soot, and what to do when a TV shares the wall.
- Art for Stairs and Hallways Following the diagonal Formats for narrow walls, how to step frames up a staircase, and the subjects that suit a corridor.
Color
- How to Choose a Painting for a Room A six-question method What the room is for, scale, orientation, palette, subject and light, one question at a time.
- Matching Paintings to Your Wall Color White, gray, dark and bold walls Echo, contrast and neutral in plain words, and what each kind of wall asks of a painting.
- The Proportion Rules Designers Use Two-thirds, 60-30-10 and 70/30 The rules of thumb for art width, room color and composition, and how to use them together.
Printing and framing
- How to Print a Public-Domain Painting Well Resolution, paper and color How many pixels each print size needs, where to get the museum's own file, and which paper suits which work.
- Frame Sizes Explained Print size, mat size and frame size What a frame size measures, how a mat lets an odd-sized print fit a standard frame, and which glazing to choose.