How to choose the right paintings and place them in the interior of an apartment: The best ideas of 2021

2023 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-11-26 05:58

It is difficult to imagine a modern house without paintings. In the interior they serve not only for decoration, but also emphasize your individual taste and create an atmosphere of comfort and harmony in the room. Today we will try to understand the current trends in painting, which can decorate your home with style and elegance. Let's take a look at several directions that are popular this year, as well as how to pick up paintings and arrange them in your home.

Having plunged a little into the history of mankind, I would like to remind, apart from the primitive people who painted their caves, the Egyptians were the first to paint their homes about five thousand years ago, applying homemade paints to the walls covered with clay. Over the millennia, painting has developed, improved, changed its forms. In the Middle Ages, masters created pictorial icons that were used to decorate the interior of temples. During the Renaissance, full-fledged portraits, landscapes and still lifes appeared. And if the 19th century was very romantic, and the painters strove for the ideal, then in the 20th century art became more rigid, somewhat rebellious. The 21st century has brought the latest digital, including 3D technologies, but many artists continue to paint paintings.

Painting today is widely used in various interior styles. Here are some examples of the most popular of them.

Classic style

The classical style is associated with palaces and estates of wealthy people, where luxury reigns inside and outside, which is expressed in natural materials, high-quality textiles, stucco moldings, and elegant decor. Classic style in painting - portraits, landscapes, genre painting, still lifes, enclosed in luxurious gilded frames. Classics are always in fashion. This is a time-tested style that does not pursue newfangled trends in design.

Loft style

Loft style - canvases with clear details - landscapes of modern cities, detailed images of cars, motorcycles, buildings, as well as various inscriptions. In an era of versatility and practicality, loft-style interiors have gained particular popularity. It is suitable for decorating spacious apartments and country houses, small apartments and office premises. All modern requirements and fashion trends are implemented at minimal cost.

Country style

Country style - helps to preserve village traditions and plunge into the world of memories of distant childhood. Painting in this style - landscapes, still lifes, genre scenes, including those made in watercolors, on a village theme.

Provence style

Provence style is a design direction that is a kind of French country. Interior items in this style are characterized by simplicity, but at the same time, grace, lightness and beauty. Painting in this style is images of flowering fields, still lifes with lush bouquets, rural animals, birds.

Minimalist style

Minimalism in interior design, contrary to popular belief, is not enough. Minimalism is when enough is enough, but also comfortable, functional and beautiful. The style of minimalism in painting is a simple canvas without a frame in the style of cubism, surrealism, abstractionism.

Art Deco style

Art Deco Style - This eclectic style is a synthesis of modernism and neoclassicism. The Art Deco style was also significantly influenced by such artistic directions as cubism, constructivism and futurism, intertwined with oriental, African and other exotic motives. Geometry is an important element of the Art Deco style.

Japanese style

This is one of the most popular ethnic varieties of minimalism. Japanese style in painting - paintings without frames with oriental motifs - figures of people in Japanese national clothes, animals, birds, cherry blossoms, inscriptions from hieroglyphs.

Functionality of paintings in design

I would like to say a few words about the functionality of paintings in design. In addition to the fact that they serve as a finishing touch in the overall decoration of the premises - with the correct arrangement of paintings, you can "smooth out" the disproportionate arrangement of furniture, correct the shape of the room, focus on detail, and simply bring elements of luxury into the interior. And there is no need to talk about a positive effect on mood. Everyone knows this feeling when the soul rejoices looking at something dear to your heart.

However, paintings can both transform and ruin the interior. And it depends not only on what is depicted on them, but rather on how exactly they are placed, where and in what quantity.

Recommended placement of paintings in the interior

Another important factor: usually pictures are hung at eye level. Western designers call it the "57-inch rule" - this is the approximate gaze level of the average person, 145-150 centimeters from the floor. It is at this point that the center of the picture should be located in order for everyone to see what is depicted on it in the best possible way. By the way, in museum halls, paintings are mostly hung at a height of 152 centimeters - that is, a little higher, because in a large room there is an opportunity to step back a couple of steps.

Large paintings are placed at the same distance from the nearest pieces of furniture, small ones - it is permissible to arrange them randomly, while taking into account that they do not fall out of the overall composition. A single canvas is placed in the most conspicuous place, and if space allows, then it is advisable not to leave it alone. In this case, it is necessary to correctly combine with all the objects available in the room, so as not to create dissonance.

Selection of paintings for the interior

In the light of the latest trends in design art, I would like to give some general recommendations on the selection and placement of paintings in a home, regardless of the style in which the interior is decorated.

You need to choose a picture for the finished interior so that it does not seem like a foreign element.

Interior design of different styles assumes different placement of paintings, mainly wall-mounted, but it is permissible to hang paintings on columns, if this does not dissonant with the general design decision.

Several paintings are used to decorate the wall that receives the least amount of light.

Paintings balance the dimensions and proportions of the furniture. So, a massive sofa or chest of drawers will visually melt less if you hang several small paintings above it.

Above the corner sofa, you can arrange a mini-gallery by placing a picture on two sides or several - one after the other.

Abstract paintings will fit well into a bedroom with walls that are not bright in the same tone.

When the painting is done in the same color scheme as the wall, decorate it with a contrasting baguette frame that matches the color of the furniture.

Segmented or modular paintings fit well in large rooms with high ceilings.

Black and white paintings are classic, always fashionable.

Several principles for placing paintings in the interior

Placement of paintings from a practical point of view

It is important to know how to place pictures in decorating a home with pictures so that they please your eye for a long time.

Pictures are not placed near the stove, and near open fireplaces - soot is extremely difficult to wash off. In addition, the high temperature spoils them, the paint cracks.

The paintings must be protected from direct sunlight - they will gradually fade and lose their color.

The nail on which the picture frame is attached should not touch the canvas - it may damage it.

Any picture looks more impressive if it is placed at a slight angle relative to the wall. There is another plus in this arrangement - the dust will settle mainly on the frame, and the picture will retain its freshness longer.

Excessively bright canvases with aggressive plots are not placed in the living room - they will "cut" the eye and create a tense atmosphere.

You can highlight the paintings with an additional light source, thereby drawing attention to them.

The oil painting is cleaned from dust and dirt with a velvet or flannel piece of cloth. However, not very damp, as the surface will absorb water and the textiles will be damaged. The canvas can also occasionally be vacuumed from the back side, and if it sags, or a noticeable dent has formed, the back side is slightly moistened with water so that the canvas is stretched.

And, finally, I would like to note: there is no such law in design that would forbid you to hang portraits and landscapes, still lifes and posters with pop art style on one wall, but try to make several paintings still have something in common: genre, color scheme, theme, size of details. This will make the composition more harmonious. The choice of specific images will already be a test of your artistic taste …

In pursuit of fashion, sometimes some people think they don't need all those boring rules. And what happens with this, read our publication: 8 worst home interior design ideas that shouldn't be repeated