You can make your own fabulous gallery wall, like me!
As much as I love simplicity in most things, I really like gallery walls in homes. Yes, one statement piece is great, but what is more glorious than a wall full of art? Your eyes dashing from one work to another, until it rests on the work of art you think may deserve your attention, just to be pulled to another. My “art collection” is modest at best, and my wall space limited. But I neeeeeeded a gallery wall for my collection. So I started one.
A quick detour about the pieces I own. The first time I travelled out of the country (to Mozambique,) I bought all kinds of little souvenirs (kaggelkak if you want) to commemorate my trip. Of all the stuff I bought, I’m still wearing a pair of pants, my toothpick holder is still in use, and the beautiful wood fruit bowl still rots my fruit in 48hrs flat. (I’m looking for a new use for it, if you have any ideas, drop me a comment.) Just to put it out there, I’m not well travelled. I (foolishly) always chose to put extra money into my bond (maybe not that foolishly) than travel. I regret it severely, but on the other hand, I get to create a gallery wall in the apartment of said paid bond. So, there.
Five years ago, I had the opportunity to go to Bali. And this time I really thought very hard about what type of souvenirs I want to take home. Across from our homestay, there was a small gallery. The artist-owner came in almost every day and sat on the floor working on his art and having long conversations with tourists. What better souvenir than supporting an artist? I have something I love that I can hang in my home that reminds me of my trip. I couldn’t (and still can’t) afford originals, but wherever I travel, I try to buy (at the very least) a signed print. And that is how my modest little collection had its start. Many pieces commemorate a trip to another country. One reminds me about going back to the city I grew up in, twenty years after leaving it. Another is a gift from an Eswatini artist (I have much respect for), and another I bought at a silent auction fundraising event.
BUT! They needed a place on my wall, and I found the task just daunting. I’m no artist myself – I just love art. I’m not great at visualising complex layouts. Thus, curating and hanging my art had the distinct potential of turning into a disaster. And many of the pieces still need to be framed. So, I need to create a wall with zero artistic propensity. Obviously, I was going to do it myself, and my wall is by far not gallery-sized….at all. Many a night, I sat on my couch with a glass of wine, just staring at it. Later I got the pieces that are ready to be hung out…for inspiration. Some nights I would lay them out on the floor, trying to get an idea of what I might want to do. It didn’t work.
One morning in the shower (where I have most of my ideas), I thought of a solution. I will take a photo of my wall and each of the pieces, superimpose them on the wall picture, and then I can play with the layout. Genius right? Great idea, a little more complex to execute. I searched the web for an app that should make it easy. And there are a few, but with limitations, ones I refused to accept. In the end, I used Canva. It took me hours to scale the paintings to just the right size. Here is where you’re going to ask me how I did it? Erm. Sorry. I didn’t keep notes on what I did. If you thought this post is going to show you step-by-step scaling… unfortunately, it won’t. I started off by measuring the wall. Then I scaled the picture of the wall accordingly. I did the same for the art, dragged the pieces onto the rendering, and started playing around until I found a layout that I liked. Whether it is artistically sound is another question. I really couldn’t give a shit. I like it.
And that brought me back to the actual hanging of the pieces. Do I measure the works out (based on my shoddy scaling), bang holes in the wall, and hope for the best? Even I had a feeling it won’t work out for the best (even after a bottle of the best plonk I can afford). Next option, and the one I went with.
I traced each art piece on a sheet of paper (I used the glossy supermarket ads that come with the newspaper, to prevent ink marks on the wall), and marked exactly where the nail needed to go. Don’t forget this step! You will see why just now. Also, remember to name each of your mock-ups, especially if some of the art pieces are similar in size. Now, you can use your digital rendering as a guide to map out exactly where each painting will go. If you made a mistake during the scaling process, this is the time where you can correct it. Stick your mock-ups up with masking tape, check that they are level (get a second pair of eyes to help out), and spaced correctly.
You’re probably thinking, why waste all that time taking pictures of the art, scaling them, finding a way to superimpose. Just stick the mock-up on and hang the stuff already. Remember my visualisation challenge? I just couldn’t imagine what the effect would be looking at margarine and toilet paper ads. And I have those pesky pieces that will need space once they’re framed. If you can do it, skip the digital part and just go ahead and map your wall out.
Here is the really cool part. Remember I reminded you to make sure to mark the exact places where the nails will go on your mock-up? They are now so convenient. With the mock-ups still on your wall, you can now just drill right through the mock-up, or nail through it, as I did. You know the positioning is perfect. Why remove the mock-up and take a chance?
And et voila!! Remove the mock-up, replace it with your fabulous art… look, you have your very own gallery wall. As you can see, mine is still a work in progress, but at least my gallery wall is starting to take shape.
Now when I stare at my wall from my couch with a glass of wine, I’m plotting world domination…I wish. I’m trying to figure out why my rye bread is still not perfect.