Artwork Sets the Vibe in Your Home
It’s a fact: The right art makes a room come alive. New rule: Art doesn't have to match your color scheme. Art can be a stand-alone element in your room's overall design plan, especially if you love it. We’re going to explore all things art in this post and fill you in on our tips, tricks and hacks for making a statement regardless of your personal style or the style of your home.
When you fill your walls with images that make you happy, they will all have that in common anyway, so there's your unifying element. Because color sets a mood more than any other design factor will, the art colors you choose will have a powerful effect on your space. We're seeing a return to bold primary colors in interior design lately and this extends to art as well. Blue sofa and red art? Sure, why not? You won't love every color combo, but play around with different ones until it feels right.
Above all, choosing art is a matter of personal taste. So even if someone else absolutely loves something, it might leave you cold. And vice versa -- What you adore isn't someone else's cup of tea. But that's the beauty of art. It's literally in the eye of the beholder. With this in mind, when you're treasure hunting at your fave thrift store or perusing an art gallery for an investment piece, your taste is the only taste that matters. Frame those photos you took on your last vacation or your baby's first smile. For greatest visual drama, place your images inside very wide white mats (even if your images are 5" x 7" they'll look more important if surrounded by a lot of white mat board.) Then frame with a matte black museum-style frame for a gallery look.
Remember that art is anything you can hang on a wall, so that includes textile wall hangings, mirrors, baskets, plates or anything with a hook on the back. Mix it up when choosing what items to hang in a room. If everything is framed under glass, regardless of how different the images may be, they'll all have a similar reflective quality and that can get boring. Try a combination with a framed image on one wall and round baskets, a mirror and a stretched canvas piece on the other walls. This creates an interesting mix of textures and styles and keeps your eye engaged.
If you want to make a big impact with art, size matters. Most people shy away from large pieces of art and often misjudge the amount of wall space they actually have. The best way to make an impression on people the moment they walk into your space is to go larger than you think you should. Pull out your tape measure and see what 24" x 36" really looks like, for instance. Try marking each corner with a piece of blue painter's tape on your wall for reference. It's not as big as you thought, right? Now that you have a reference point, shop for art with an eye toward wall-filling images. You can also hang two pieces of the exact same size side by side to get the effect of one large-scale piece.
As easily as art can elicit strong emotions, it can also bring you a sense of calm and peace. Images from nature have a particularly soothing effect -- plants, stones, sea, sand and sky all lower your blood pressure and bring about serene feelings. These types of images work well in bedrooms and bathrooms, places where sleep, rest and relaxation reign supreme. Placing a nature photograph of plants in your room has the effect of bringing the outdoors in as well. So anytime you want a little moment of zen and a connection to Mother Nature, look for nature-themed art.
Art literally has the ability to cause emotion in humans. It's what has fascinated us about art and great artists over the centuries. Modern art in particular seeks to stir feelings of excitement through the use of color, form and juxtaposed themes. Have you ever stood in front of a painting at a museum and almost gasped? That's exactly what the artist wanted to pull from you. You can achieve these moments of pure exhilaration by shopping for inexpensive prints of your favorite modern artists' works. Sites like art.com and allposters.com have enormous collections of choices. So there's no need to break the bank at a toney art gallery. Art should be -- and is -- accessible to all.