Art can serve as a conversation starter, a focal point in a room, or a finishing touch. If you’ve spent effort and time setting up each room in your home, you might want to consider spending just as much time selecting the art to place in them.
Filling empty spaces with color and character can be challenging, and your home might look incoherently decorated when you don’t do it right.
However, there are simple tips that, when you follow them, you’ll be aware of issues that might not ordinarily look obvious but are pivotal to how beautiful your home turns out.
Picking out art can be exciting and fun when you know what to do. So follow our proven tips to choose the right artwork for your home.
Where To Buy Original Artwork for Your Home
Galleries are an obvious location for anyone looking to purchase artwork, but they can be a little too much for people new to selecting art pieces. More affordable and less overwhelming options are local art shows and craft fairs.
You can also purchase postcards of artwork you like or check out museum gift shops for prints, then bring them home to compare how the colors and motifs fare against your walls.
E-tailers such as Fine Art America sell copies of prints of paintings in museums. They let you choose the paper, mat, and frame type your art will come in.
1. Know Your Budget
There’s a certain pull when you see an artwork you like, and unless you can go big, your budget is the first thing you’ll want to consider.
For those willing to spend significant funds on the art they want to purchase, take a look at galleries near you. Or you can reach out to any artist whose work you’re a fan of and ask for what they have on sale.
Keep in mind that purchasing an original can be a smart financial decision.
There are creative people all over the world that sell art in various forms, such as masks, carvings, prints, rugs, and more. Look for the kind of art you want, and scroll through countless options before deciding on the maximum amount to spend.
If you’re strictly on a budget, check out big-box stores such as Target or Ikea. They have pre-framed collections that are very affordable and quite great. Art fairs and websites like Society6, Sellfy, Printify, and Etsy are also great alternatives for getting an inexpensive refresh of any art you want.
2. What Style Do You Gravitate Towards?
Think about your personal taste when you come across a piece of art. Do you connect with bright colors, or are darker shades what you resonate with? It’s helpful you narrow down which of the different styles of art you want to spend your money on.
Google Arts & Culture section is a good place to start. That way, you’d know different categories of framed art, whether modern, renaissance, or a little of everything else.
Even though trends can drive your interests, you want your home to represent how you feel. Any research or self-reflection you want to do, ensure it’s something you’re truly attracted to and will stand the test of time.
3. Consider Already Existing Styles
Even if you’re just moving into a new place and want to decorate from scratch, there’s an already existing style that made you choose the place. You can complement that style with an art piece.
On the other hand, if you’re looking to redecorate and switch up styles, envision how the artwork will help create the new look you’re trying to achieve.
Another completely different alternative is to go completely opposite to what you already have in your home. Modern paintings can fit seamlessly into old houses, whereas modern rooms can also feature older-style paintings.
4. Walls and Furniture
Any existing furniture also has to be considered the same way you thought about the style you plan to achieve. The colors, size, and subject matter of your new art should match your furniture or already existing art.
Be sure to remember that you can play with furniture positions, too, if you feel it can add depth to the room setting. Just try to rearrange it in a way that suits your art collection.
5. Buy What You Love
The aim of putting up art pieces around the home is to create an ambiance that reflects your personality and brings you joy. Make sure the piece you buy speaks to you on some level, not just because it’s the right size and color.
When you get new pieces of art and mixing them up with preexisting ones doesn’t quite work with what you have in mind, consider other styles you can experiment with. Or better still, put it up in other rooms.
And if you love your new artwork so much that you start to a little off about existing ones, give it time. You’ll get used to the new look.
Conclusion
Choosing the perfect art for your home can be tricky. You’ll want something that can last for long, and you won’t grow tired of staring at it and at the same time complimenting the style you’re already used to.
If you get worked up every time you try purchasing an art piece, cut yourself some slack, even experts encounter challenges when decorating a space.
Just know that no matter how much you might be attached to a piece of art or how expensive, you don’t have to commit to it forever. There are sites you can put the art up for sale if you want to change to a new look.
In looking for ideas, vacations offer a great opportunity to explore art. Since your memories are tied to any place you visit, you can purchase art that reflects that memory and the good times you had.
Adding art to your home will forever be a decision you’ll enjoy for years to come.