Bored with the same setting and décor of your living room? Can’t stop staring at a blank wall wondering how to complement that empty space? Thinking about the size of an exceptional painting you’ve browsed on an online marketplace, but still not sure if it would be a misfit? There can be ‘n’ number of design possibilities, dilemmas, and confusions so that you spend hours brainstorming the perfect choice.
Often, it’s not about the artwork; it’s about its size. Some artworks looking great on art platforms or virtual marketplaces can look oversized or unfitting once they hang on the wall.
There are smart ways to choose the ideal wall art for living room. The best part is that you don’t have to be an interior designer to get this done. What you need is some practical guidelines to find the best pieces to uplift the décor of your living room and also feel happy as a homeowner and collector.
With some smart ideas, upgrade the look of your living space and give the attention it truly deserves.
Let’s explore more in this blog.
Size Does Matter: Art for Living Rooms
Making artworks fit into your required space needs some attention. The right-sized artwork can elevate the look, while the wrong size can make even extraordinary pieces feel out of place.
Small artworks often disappear into a massive wall, making the room look bare, while humongous paintings can overwhelm the look & feel of your living area if it’s not matching with the surrounding décor or upholstery.
Your goal is not to fill the space but to create harmony with art and your wall space.
Before buying the perfect living room wall art, think about whether the piece complements your furniture, lighting arrangements, and other room accessories. The room shouldn’t feel cluttered but soothing to your eyes.
Start with the Wall Size—Not with the Artwork
Measuring your wall space is the first step before you decide on the artwork. Often, people do the other way round. They buy the artwork and then try to fit it into the space.
So, be smart, and measure the space for hanging the pieces.
Consider a few things regarding the specification of the living room wall—
Whether the wall has accents, wallpaper, or any other feature; whether you’re going to hang the artwork above the sofa; whether there is enough breathing space around the designated area you are targeting.
Knowing these answers will make your search easy. You can make use of the space more prudently and can decide on the perfect art for your living room.
Follow the Rule of 60% to 75% Used in Interior Design
There is a common rule in interior design—it is recommended that any artwork hung above a piece of furniture, like sofa sets, tables, etc., should occupy around 60% to 75% of the furniture’s width.
Think of the visual width of any artwork accordingly. Choose a large wall art for living room if your furniture is wider than 90 inches. You can think of a triptych wall art as well.
The rule is to create harmony so that the artistic ones do not look oversized.
Choose Between a Single Large Wall Art and Multiple Smaller Ones
Would you prefer a colossal painting or a salon-style arrangement with many smaller artworks? Most of the time, this distinction matters when choosing the artwork sizes. Both have their dimensions, beauty, and depth, but everything depends on your style of curation.
Choose large, unique wall art for the living room if you want:
A bold statement with a single focus
An abstract, minimalist piece of artwork
Artwork that looks expansive rather than cluttered
A bold and dramatic-looking artwork
Place large artworks in big-sized rooms with high ceilings and less clutter.
Prefer multiple artworks if you have more than a focal point:
Prefer a gallery setting when you’re trying to tell stories with various smaller pieces.
When you do not have expansive or vintage living rooms but contemporary spaces with a unique identity, this option will work well.
You can try with smaller artworks, realigning them according to your choice.
Think of a gallery setup—the walls give you freedom to showcase different art media on the same wall, like a photograph with a painting or a sketch. All of them reflect your personality and your choice of artistic genre.
Balance Art with the Scale of Furniture
Another important aspect is the furniture in the living room. The artworks must resonate with the style of your living room settings.
Do not place a small framed artwork above a corner sofa or a family-sized sofa setting.
Likewise, do not place a gigantic frame just above a narrow table. It might look overpowering.
Always think of an artwork in respect to the placement of furniture, and visualize them as coherent pieces.
Think of the Viewing Distance in Your Living Space
An easy tip: before you finalize the area where you should place the artwork, do a small thing.
Mark the dimensions of the artwork on the wall with painter’s tape and visualize the piece from all the corners of the room.
See if a large artwork can be viewed from a considerable distance. If your seating arrangement is far from the artwork, you can select bold expressions, with larger details, and contrasts.
For a smaller and compact room, artworks must be placed within a visible distance, or else they will just disappear.
Choose Art That Reflects Your Personality
Not only the size of the artworks, but the meaning also plays a very significant role here.
Pick some unique wall art for your living room from online art marketplaces like Saatchi Art, Artnet, TERAVARNA, and others to buy contemporary artworks, using the AR/VR viewing feature. You can visualize artworks, placing them on simulated walls.
They do not have to be the trendiest ones, but the ones that reflect your preference of genres like surreal paintings, abstract canvases, a contemporary take on wildlife, mixed media works, floral art, modern portraiture, and so on.
And you’ll feel their presence every day.
What is the Perfect Height to Hang Art
To keep everything visually balanced, also consider the height of the artworks—whether you hang them above any furniture.
They must not dangle. Leave at least a 6- to 10-inch gap between the top of the furniture and the bottom of the hung pieces.
The center of the artwork must be placed at eye level, as one of the rules of interior design.
Learning How to Choose Art for Your Living Room Is an Art Itself
Your living room deserves a more than empty spaces, blank-looking walls, or cluttered arrangements. You don’t need to follow trends blindly; it’s about creating a space that resonates with your aesthetic sense and your preferences, complementing the fittings and fixtures of the room.
So, learning how to choose art for your living room isn’t about chasing trends but about making the room inviting and inspiring with every fresh look.
Make your search for living room wall art convenient at art marketplaces like TERAVARNA, which offers a pool of choice to uplift any space artistically.
You can even try a small trick here—
If you are not sure of the size and space ratio, you can place any kraft paper or newspaper of exact dimension and place it as a dummy artwork on the wall. Observe it for a day or two. After that, you’ll get to know whether it looks fine from all angles and goes well with the lighting, adding a soul and storytelling to your living space.
