Expert Guide: How to Position Wall Art for a Bedroom?

Are you one of those people who like to keep the walls in their bedroom plain until they’re completely sure about exactly what they want to display on them? Or maybe you’re a minimalist who, although with a flair for art, is hesitant to put up paintings and posters that may disturb the overall aesthetic? We understand that people want their home to reflect their personality, which is why in this article, our experts will share with you the best way to arrange your favorite wall art for a bedroom to help you create a focal point and bring character into the space without overpowering your decor! 

 

What Artwork Should Go in a Bedroom?

According to the rules of feng shui, the artwork we choose for our bedrooms should be joyful, inspiring, and inviting of good luck and love. If you are in a relationship, or married, displaying paintings of birds such as a phoenix, swans, or mandarin ducks on the southwest corner of the bedroom is believed to bring a lot of bliss. Other elements that help accumulate positive energy in the space are:

• Elephants
• Red peonies
• Cherry blossoms
• Pears
• Peaches
• Wood art

What to Avoid?

Feng shui forbids the display of paintings of bodies of water, as it disturbs the balance of the yin and yang energies. It’s also not recommended to have posters and paintings of aggressive animals, photos of relatives, children, or yourself and your significant other, and winter and desert images.

Read also: Upcycling art – Creative ideas for wall decoration from wooden pallets

How to Position Wall Art for a Bedroom?

If we dismiss the walls where your windows and wardrobe are, most of you will be left with two plain walls that you can get creative with. If you’ve decided to add a TV, as well, then the one wall you’re left with is the one opposing it. This is completely fine because the best place to display art in the bedroom is in fact above the bed. We’re going to take a look at 6 ways that you can arrange it to fit your space and aesthetic.

Creative Arrangement

One of the most popular ways to arrange your art at home at the moment is by creating gallery walls. For this approach, you’re going to need artwork in different sizes, as both landscape and portrait frames are okay. You can use the measurements shown above as a guide, although there’s no rule that states exactly how big or how many the frames should be. However, what’s important to take into consideration is the space you leave between each image, which should be around 3–6 inches, depending on the size. For the smaller pictures, leave less space between the frames, and for the larger ones – more. The bottom frames should be around 8–10 inches above the tip of the hedabord.

Two Image Arrangement

The standard size of medium portrait paintings or posters is about 24″ x 36″. If you want to arrange two of those side by side, the spacing between them should be no more than 3 inches for a queen-size bed and 6 inches for a king-size bed. Again, place the artwork 8–10 inches above the top of the headboard.

Use a Display Shelf

A great way to utilize the space above your bed is by adding shelves. This certainly doesn’t mean that you need to choose between them and your favorite artwork, as you can simply display it on them! The shelf should be aligned with the bed, around 30–40 inches above the mattress. Depending on its length, you can either display two medium-sized paintings, one large and one medium, or 3 small ones.

Single Painting Arrangement

Displaying a single large painting above your bed is an excellent way to create a focal point in the space. To achieve an aesthetic appeal, it’s best for the painting to be at least 2/3 the width of the bed, and about 60 inches above the floor (this can vary depending on the height of the ceiling, as well as the height of the bed and headboard).

Keep in mind that the painting should be aligned with the center of the bed, not the ideal center of the wall. If you want to achieve a dramatic effect, you can add wall sconces or a picture light above the artwork.

Another important thing to consider is how the artwork correlates to the rest of your decor. If you have a colorful room with many textures, and you also want to place a bold art piece above your bed, maybe choose a painting or poster that’s not bigger than 30″ x 40″, otherwise it will make your room appear smaller.

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