My family moved into a new home last June, and I’ve been staring at a big blank wall above the sofa ever since. I’m immobilized by indecision… should we save and buy something we really love to hang on that most prominent living room wall? Or should I get a placeholder so it doesn’t look so blank and bleak?
Maybe a gallery wall? I could gather pieces I’ve had for a while and mix them with some thrift finds?
It’s impossible to decide. But luckily Nicole Fisher, founder of BNR Interiors, has heard it all before and has some solid advice for the decision-impaired. Read on for tips on how to approach blank walls with confidence.
Colorful art hangs on a living room designed by BNR Interiors.
BNR Interiors
When looking for art for my home, where should I start shopping?
“Art all depends on budget. There are some very affordable options and resources to pick one-of-a-kind pieces. I love shopping vintage when I don’t have a huge budget because it’s a very cost-effective way to find something unique. If you’re looking for a statement piece or an investment piece, you want to go to a gallery. For this, I enlist my art curator, Laurie Carrol of Procurio. She has all the resources to find that perfect piece from anywhere in the world.”
How do I determine my budget? It seems like cheap art might not be good art, but at the same time, I don’t have an infinite budget. Would you recommend dealing with blank walls for a while to save up for a special piece?
“Yes, in some instances I would recommend dealing with a blank wall while you save up for something special. If you have one large focal wall, it’s better to save up and get something special. If you have a large hallway or stairwell, it’s a great place for a gallery wall. You need several small pieces to fill up the space, and it’s usually a less costly way to do so.”
Where are some key placements (above a sofa, entryway, etc.) where art works well in a home?
“I like to put larger or investment pieces in a home’s social rooms like a living room or a dining room. They’re rooms you sit and spend time in, so you and your guests will really get to appreciate it.”
A graphic piece of art hangs above a fireplace in a family room designed by BNR Interiors
BNR Interiors
How do you decide whether pieces should be placed on their own or as part of a gallery?
“Scale is usually the first thing I look at. If the piece or photo is smaller in scale, it will always work in a gallery. Also, I love an unexpectedly smaller-scaled piece of art in an entryway or a guest bedroom. It adds a charming quality to the room.”
Is there a perfect height placement for art?
“Eye-level is always the perfect height!”
How do I determine the right size?
“When determining the right size, if a piece is going behind furniture, I like to make it take up 2/3 of the space. I am certainly more partial to larger pieces and statement makers.”
A painting of a dog is placed above the fireplace in a room designed by BNR Interiors.
BNR Interiors
I’ve seen pieces artfully placed off-center above a sofa or elsewhere in a room and it can really add interest—or look weird! Are there any rules to getting this right?
“Art is so subjective, so if it looks right to you, that’s all that matters! Personally, I’m a fan of symmetry and centering pieces.”
How do I determine my style if I’m not sure?
“Go to a museum, walk around the Chelsea galleries, and see what strikes your eye to determine your style. Whether it’s the movement or the colors or the subject matter, that’ll give you a good jumping-off point.”
What are some other rules for buying and hanging art, and which rules should be broken sometimes?
“The great thing is that there are no rules when it comes to buying or hanging art. My one piece of advice is to enlist a professional if you’re interested in investing in something special. Apart from their connections, they have intel on the artist, what the piece may be worth, and how to make the best use of your money.”
LONDON (AP) — With a few daubs of a paintbrush, the Brontë sisters have got their dots back.
More than eight decades after it was installed, a memorial to the three 19th-century sibling novelists in London’s Westminster Abbey was amended Thursday to restore the diaereses – the two dots over the e in their surname.
The dots — which indicate that the name is pronounced “brontay” rather than “bront” — were omitted when the stone tablet commemorating Charlotte, Emily and Anne was erected in the abbey’s Poets’ Corner in October 1939, just after the outbreak of World War II.
They were restored after Brontë historian Sharon Wright, editor of the Brontë Society Gazette, raised the issue with Dean of Westminster David Hoyle. The abbey asked its stonemason to tap in the dots and its conservator to paint them.
“There’s no paper record for anyone complaining about this or mentioning this, so I just wanted to put it right, really,” Wright said. “These three Yorkshire women deserve their place here, but they also deserve to have their name spelled correctly.”
It’s believed the writers’ Irish father Patrick changed the spelling of his surname from Brunty or Prunty when he went to university in England.
Raised on the wild Yorkshire moors, all three sisters died before they were 40, leaving enduring novels including Charlotte’s “Jane Eyre,” Emily’s “Wuthering Heights” and Anne’s “The Tenant of Wildfell Hall.”
Rebecca Yorke, director of the Brontë Society, welcomed the restoration.
“As the Brontës and their work are loved and respected all over the world, it’s entirely appropriate that their name is spelled correctly on their memorial,” she said.
