Thank you for your patience, Gentle Readers! I apologize for the hiatus. Work got a little hectic for a minute ;)
A dear friend has moved into a new apartment, and she asked me an excellent question: Can I hang art on wallpaper? If so, how?
I haven’t seen the new place (because it’s, um, in Australia), but I do know that it’s fairly modern and flooded with light. Jackie by David Amoroso is going to be the star of the show:
So what wallpaper would look best with Jackie? A wallpaper with a white background and a one-color design is a great option. How amazing would Schumacher’s iconic Queen of Spain look behind Jackie?!?
If you have a situation in which it’s hard to know where to stop and start wallpaper (e.g. an open floor plan), a white “field” — and an airy design overall — can be used EVERYWHERE.
Deconstructed Stripe by Schumacher, against which Jackie ALSO would look divine, illustrates the point in this double-height condo we designed. The white background keeps the space light and bright, and the subtle pattern provides interest on the huge expanses of wall that don’t have art. (Yet!)
A different direction for Jackie would be a multi-colored pattern on a white background. I am in LOVE with Parker & Jules’ Eversley Verdigris wallpaper. In LOVE, I tell you! And I think it would complement our beautiful Jackie quite well.
Now, if Jackie were all on her own on a floating wall, that’s, say, dividing an entryway from a living room, one could use a dark, solid color wallcovering to create an accent wall behind her if one so desired. A wallcovering such as — say it with me! — grasscloth. Or even vinyl grasscloth if relentless sunlight or allergies are an issue.
For Jackie, I would NOT try to match one of the colors in the picture. The palette is so light…to set off the painting properly, I recommend a really dark version of one of the colors in the painting.
“If you’re going to use a solid color,” I hear you asking, “couldn’t you just paint the wall?”
No. I’m sorry. A painted accent wall behind Jackie would be trite. You need the depth of a rich color AND the physical texture of grasscloth (or silk, raffia, etc.). If you don’t use a wallcovering, just paint the walls the same color you’re using everywhere else. She’ll still look very pretty.
Moving away from Jackie specifically, when you’re hanging art on seriously patterned wallpaper, whether it has a dark or light background, it REALLY helps if the artwork has a light colored mat. If the picture itself has white or light field, you might be able to get away without a mat, but the mat really helps.
Here are some examples from my own dining room (these are draft photos – we’re still tweaking). The wallpaper is Schumacher’s Queen Fruit:
Do you see how it would just be too intense to hang Jackie on this wallpaper? There’s no break for your eye; neither the painting nor the wallpaper would be shown to its best advantage.
I hope this is helpful, Gentle Readers. You know what a wallpaper proponent I am, so it would break my heart if your wonderful art collection were your excuse for not having any.
This blog post is dedicated to Paul M. and his open, open mind ;)
Annie Elliott Design is based in Washington, DC. If you’ve been wondering how to style your bookcase, wonder no more: here are my tips on NBC4.