How to Choose Art for Each Room in Your Home

Visual Artist Cecilia Villanueva

 by Cecilia Villanueva
(this article was originally featured in 365 Things To Do In Houston)

Greetings art enthusiasts! If you are planning to buy art to decorate your home and you are not sure if it should match the couch… here are a few tips to guide you. We do not experience art only through color. We experience art mostly because of its content, even if the painting or sculpture is abstract. So, it is mostly about choosing what emotions, memories, or thoughts the art evokes in us due to its colors, shapes, theme, or rhythm. Art inhabits a house with great force, and it is the second most interesting thing in a home… humans being the first. Pick your art thinking of yourself rather than the furniture (and pick your humans well also). It is easy and fun to include art in every room if we understand basic design fundamentals. Once you learn them, I am sure you will feel more confident and will soon become an ace in choosing art for yourself, your family, and friends.
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Three Components of Every Room
Every room has essentially three components.

• Verticals – Doors and walls
• Horizontals – Floors and ceilings
• Furniture –Tables, chairs, lamps and other accessories

And what about art? Most of the time, art pieces are verticals. If the art piece is hanging from the ceiling; it’s a vertical. If it is a sculpture on a pedestal in the middle of a room; it’s a vertical. If it is a painting; it’s a vertical. The only time art becomes a horizontal is when it is attached, or semi-attached, to a horizontal. For example, a mural painted on the floor or the ceiling, a structure such as a shallow pool, or an art piece meant to be walked on. With this knowledge, you can be confident in following a simple design rule.

One Simple Rule of Thumb
Simply put—pair verticals with verticals and horizontals with horizontals. Furniture does not have to pair with anything, whether it be the horizontals or verticals. Breathe deep; most of the time, art is a vertical. So, when buying art for a specific room, think how one piece of art will converse with another. Art does not have to match art, but a painting will certainly influence a sculpture nearby, or vice versa. Choose art pieces that can become friends and harmonize—like different instruments in a concert playing together to make a statement or to quietly flow with no sound.

Troubleshooting Tips with Colors, Textures & Spaces
It can sometimes get tricky if your doors or walls are colorful (red, purple, yellow, green, blue, and the like) rather than neutral. Remember that black, gray, brown, and white are neutrals; wood is a texture, but we will classify it as a neutral just for this case. Design for doors and walls can also be easy to tackle if you consider the following: 

• A vividly-colored door will strongly influence an artwork nearby.
• Drapery, no matter the color, is an accessory. So we do not need to take it into account for art acquisition.
• A colorful wall or wallpaper will become the painting’s frame.

As for actual, physical frames, try to harmonize the frames used in the same room or area. For example, use black frames for the art that hangs in the library or home office space, no frames for the dining room, Victorian frames for the master bedroom, and chunky frames for the kitchen. Also, if your space is small, check this counterintuitive rule: A big painting will make a small space look bigger.

Trust Your Emotions
Ultimately, what has worked best for me is to acquire art that resonates with me. My collection matches myself, my world, and my humanity; I try to use this same philosophy with my clients. Dear friends, I hope that with this simple advice you feel confident to plunge into the deep waters of the art world. Above all, I hope you enjoy collecting and surrounding yourself with artwork you love! But… if after reading this article you are still in doubt and want more advice, just call Archway Gallery at 713-522-2409 to find out when I will be there so that you can come chat with me about design questions you may have. No costs involved… but you can bring donuts, if you want.

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Archway Gallery patrons explore work created by local artists.