The Designer’s Guide: Curating Art with Intention

As an interior designer, I’m often asked how to make a house feel like a home. While furniture lays the foundation, it’s the art on the walls that truly tells the story. However, I know that staring at a blank wall with a stack of frames can feel a bit daunting. Whether you’re working with a collection of travel photography or a mix of heirloom sketches, creating a gallery wall is about more than just finding the center point—it’s about balance, scale, and soul. Today, I’m sharing a few of my favorite designer secrets for mixing finishes and choosing the right dimensions to ensure your favorite memories get the 'main stage' treatment they deserve.

• Start with a Common Thread: To keep the wall from feeling cluttered, look for a "connector." This could be a consistent color palette in the art, matching matting, or a specific frame material (like all soft champagne gold or classic black). For a more eclectic look, mix wood and metal frames.

• The Power of White Space: Don’t be afraid of the "breathable" space between frames. I usually recommend 2 to 3 inches between pieces. It’s tight enough to feel like one cohesive unit, but wide enough that each photo stands on its own.

• Measure Twice, Hammer Once: Here is my favorite designer hack: trace your frames onto kraft paper, cut them out, and tape them to the wall with painter's tape. You can live with the "paper gallery" for a day or two to make sure the flow feels right before making any permanent holes.

• Vary Your Horizons: Mix your orientations! A gallery wall looks much more dynamic when you balance vertical (portrait) and horizontal (landscape) shots. If you have too many of one type, it can start to look like a grid rather than a curated collection.

• Mind the Eye Level: A common mistake is hanging art too high. Aim for the center of the entire gallery to be about 57 to 60 inches from the floor—which is standard gallery height—or 6 to 8 inches above the top of a sofa or sideboard.

• Incorporate Texture: Photography looks stunning when paired with a little dimension. Consider tucking in a small wall clock, a brass sconce, a funky mirror, or even a small hanging succulent to break up the flat surfaces and add a "lived-in" designer feel.

Until next time—keep finding the beauty in the details.