Hanging It Right

It's not rocket science, but I am often astounded by how badly some people hang their works of art. The mistake of choice always seems to be that folks hang paintings too high. Think 60 inches. If you put the visual center of your prized piece 5 feet up on the wall you will be happy with how it looks. Most museums would agree. That number is not cast in stone of course but it's a very good place to start. (If you and your spouse are professional basketball players you might want to adjust the 60 inches up a tad but don't go too high or your guests won't get the best view of your Rembrandt.)

Remember "visual" center does not mean "geometric" center. If you look at paintings a lot you will begin to see that their composition varies and often the artist's compositional center is not in the exact middle of the work. If there is a lot of sky, for instance, the visual center will usually be below the middle.

Symmetry is not necessarily your friend. (Odd numbers can be.) If you have a group of works to hang in one place, family photos for example, don't think that hanging them in rigid rows is always the best way to do it. Play around with how John, Suzie and Hank the beagle look in different configurations. You might be surprised to see that 5 in one grouping, 2 in another and a singleton all by its lonesome look better than 2 straight rows of 4.

If it's heavy, cradle it. Mirrors often fall into the too-heavy-for-one-wire-going-straight-across-the-back category. Tell your framer (or you can do it) to put 2 extra eye hooks 1/3 of the way in from each side of the bottom moulding of your frame. Run the hanging wire also through these extra eyes and make a cradle for the piece. That way you don't risk putting too much strain on the sides of your frame and popping the corners.

Exceptions. There are plenty of them but that's for another day.