When I was a little girl, I dreamt of being an artist when I grew up.
It was inconceivable that I’d be anything else, to be honest, as I spent my days drawing, painting and colouring.
Then when I was a little bit bigger I studied for an art A’Level, followed by a graphic design course at art college, before finally leaving home and doing a degree in Illustration in London.
A creative career was definitely on the cards, from a relatively early age.
But whilst I do still paint very occasionally — and I also create prints and paper-cuts to sell in my little shop — I certainly wouldn’t consider myself an artist. Designer, yes, definitely. Artist? Sadly not.
But I still love art — in all it’s forms. I’ve always got such a buzz from going to a gallery; seeing an exhibition wall filled with amazing images is one of my favourite things to do but given the fact we don’t live in a city anymore, trips to galleries are few and far between these days.
So I have decided to create my own gallery wall at home.
We went to a lovely hotel, in the Cotswolds, a couple of weeks ago and one of the things that I loved the most was a gallery wall they’d created up the main staircase.
It has given me the inspiration to do the same at home.
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Creating a Gallery Wall at Home
I LOVE the dark painted wall in the picture above. But I’m envisaging charcoal grey or perhaps navy on our own staircase (I’m thinking ‘Drawing Room Blue’ by Farrow and Ball). Or maybe Downpipe.
With a wall filled with glorious colourful and graphic art, that will really make an impact and look amazing against the dark background.
I’ve tracked down a fab website called King & McGaw, where you can buy the most fantastic range of art prints.
They’ve a huge selection. Everything from modern — abstract, pop art and Bauhaus — to photography prints, typography based prints and even street art reproductions.
There’s such a wealth of beautiful imagery, that I’ve really struggled to narrow down my favourite pieces. But given the fact that I’ve always been obsessed by colour, my magpie tendencies draw me straight to the riot of beautiful shades in Amy Sia’s work.
And my love for all things graphic has also seen me obsessing over these gorgeous bold prints by Inaluxe.
So to try and see if this mix of styles would work (particularly in the kind of setting that I’m imagining them in) I found an image of a hallway, with a similar feel to ours, on Pinterest.
Then with a little bit of Photoshop trickery I’ve created a mock up of how our gallery wall could look.
It’s so eye-catching and such a gorgeous riot of colour.
I don’t think my eyes would ever tire of looking at such a fantastic display; it would be like going to an art exhibition every-time I went up and down the stairs! And it also goes to show that a mix of graphic prints, combined with less regimented, painted pieces work really well together.
I can feel a painting weekend coming on ;)
Watch this space.
Caro Davies is a former art-director turned writer and content-creator, and editor behind UK lifestyle blog The Listed Home. She writes about home-related topics, from interiors and DIY to food and craft. The Listed Home has been featured in various publications, including Ideal Home, Grazia, and Homes & Antiques magazines.
Ooooh, you clever clog! That looks FANTASTIC! We have two gallery walls in our home at present – one in the stair well and another in the kitchen/diner and I LOVE them. The only thing is, ours are mostly photographs so I kind of hanker after an ‘arty’ one like the one you’re dreaming up. Can’t wait to see it!!
Aah thanks chickie!! Yes — we had a photo one up the stairs which has now been disassembled and we’ve put the pics on photo ledges. I’m not 100% happy with it — it looks a bit weedy. I want something really impactful for the space :)
What a great idea, the wall looks fab. I’ve been persuading my husband that we need a picture wall in our dining room and I’m not sure he entirely gets the image I have in my head! xx
BRILLIANT! Then show him this and hopefully he’ll be able to see what you’re talking about!! ;)
Caro I love Ling & McGaw the choice is incredible, I love the bright bold prints, ooh I could spend a fortune on art I love it x
Gosh — they’ve got some gorgeous things haven’t they? Choosing from such a range is really, really hard!!
Now this is something my wife wants to do. We have a couple of large, underused walls at home and a gallery would be ideal. Just need to get some prints and pictures sorted out! King and Mcgraw could be the place to go. Thanks for hosting #HomeEtc
It’s SUCH a great way to make a feature of a wall. We’ve currently got a photo gallery up our stairs but think that the colourful artwork would look amazing!! DO IT! Your wife is a genius ;)
I just don’t even know where to start with this, the colour on the walls contrasted against the gorgeous vibrancy on the prints, this could be a hallway that would make you SO happy all the time. Brilliant creativity X
Thanks so much lovely :) I’ve been hankering after painting somewhere in the house in that inky blue for a long time — I think up the stairs would be amazing!! Particularly with some gorgeous prints!! Can’t wait to do it!!!
This is a great idea, I love the colour choice too as it will let the colours in the prints shoot out. Looking forward to seeing the real thing!
Thanks lovely — I can’t wait until we’ve the time to get around to it!! SO excited to see it in the flesh!
One of my few regrets in life is that I went the business route rather than the creative route after school. I never wanted to and don’t know why I did. Security I suppose. Buy anyway,..
Your mock up is a fab idea! Looks great.
We had a gallery wall in our first flat in Germany and I loved it. I was so sad to leave the flat, but the house is brilliant. Just totally different.
Aah I WISH I’d had the option!!! Business — or anything academic (apart from English lit and language studies) — is just not in my blood!! There was not a choice about whether I went down the creative route. It’s the only thing I know!! ;)
I want some sort of gallery wall. I’ve just got a new desk in a corner of our living room, so I’m thinking there would be good. Just got to decide what to put up! x
#HomeEtc
You should put a gallery wall in your lovely, bright new kitchen!! It would look amazing!
I had no idea you were an illustrator! Oh goodness me. That is so brilliant! I didn’t realise I was ‘arty’ and quite creative until I was in my early twenties because I was always good at science. It’s funny to think how things might have been different. Love this idea! xx
I don’t often draw things these days to be honest — I tend to use my Mac for EVERYTHING!! I bet my skills are so rusty!!
Your mock up looks stunning, I love it! We’ve got a photo collage wall, which I love xx
Aah thanks so much Hannah! Let’s hope it works as well in real life :)