Decorating with picture frames

Whether you hang them on the walls or place them on a table, a desk or other piece of furniture, picture frames contribute a unique personal touch to a room. You can use frames to hold a painting from a favourite artist, family photographs, mementos, reproductions, posters, canvases or laminations, giving each room in the house its very special character. But there are basic criteria you must consider both in choosing the type of frames you will use (piece to be framed, size, appearance etc.) and in installing them (groupings, height, size of room, colour and lighting).
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Choosing the frame
Personalizing a room with framed pieces
Trying without crying
Protecting paintings and frames

Choosing the frame

It is in choosing the frame that you give a personal touch to a work that pleases you. That is when you need to marry art and framing, bearing in mind other important factors such as surroundings and decorating style. If you want the effect to be soft and conservative, you will choose a frame in the same tones as the piece to be framed while you will select contrasting colours if you want a more dramatic effect.

You may achieve the style of your choice (for example add richness or a classic look to a piece of art) using a white mat rather than a traditional mat. Wood frames typically suit classic or pastoral pieces, landscapes and still lifes. Metal framing is better suited to modern, simple and open pieces in strong primary colours.

You need also consider the type of paint used in art as well as the style of the work. Simple canvases depicting everyday life are better suited to lively rooms. At the same time, you should remember that water-colours are generally softer while oils tend to stand out more. Depending on the effect you seek, you may wish to opt for subtle or conservative framing or you may elect to highlight a piece with a more dynamic frame. If you wish to give a piece more substance or richness, you may have to opt for sculpted, painted or dyed wood.

Personalizing a room with framed pieces

When it comes to art, price has no limit. The same can be said for the attachment each one of us can hold for certain art pieces, photographs or posters. That attachment will become important when the time comes for you to hang a cherished piece. A favourite canvas should normally find itself in a common room where it can be admired by all, family and visitors alike. Hanging it in the most remote corner of the house will certainly not contribute to the enjoyment of all.

The size of paintings will, to some extent, dictate where you will hang them. Large ones will usually fare better in larger rooms. Small frames, on the other hand, should be hanged in large rooms provided they are grouped in a personalized arrangement. For example, you can hang one medium-size frame between two smaller ones or align a series of small ones as long as they hang asymmetrically as is often done for an opening or an exhibition.

Contrary to what many think, it is possible to group different styles of frames and framed pieces. Successful arrangements require that you try a number of layouts until you find the right combination. Anything that is unsuitable is likely to stand out. In the end, similarity is not the most important criterion. Common elements such as colour, materials, themes are what matter in creating unusual and suitable effects.
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