How to hang art: height, spacing, hooks and where not to put it

Most pictures are hung by eye, and most look it. The fix is three measurements: the height, the gap and the fixing. This guide takes them in that order, then covers where heat and light will harm the work. It belongs to the framing and care section and follows on from how to frame art. If you are still choosing what to hang, see where to buy affordable art and original art vs prints.

Start with the height

Hang the work by its centre. Museums hold modern and contemporary work at 1.55 metres to the middle of the picture, and Old Masters tend to hang a little higher. At home, put the centre at 145 cm (57 inches) from the ground to match average eye level, or around 152 cm (60 inches) on a blank wall. Pick one figure and keep it when you move between rooms.

Eye level differs from person to person, so the figure is a standard rather than a rule. If yours is different, use your own measurement. At home the right height also depends on furniture and ceiling height. Installers measure hallways and stairways from the bottom edge instead, at 147 to 152 cm (58 to 60 inches) from the floor. When in doubt, hang low, so the work relates to the furniture or architecture. The common mistake is hanging too high, which leaves a piece floating on its own.

Hang one picture, step by step

• Gather a tape measure, a level and a stud finder. A level of at least 61 cm (24 inches) is more accurate than a short one.
• Mark the centre height on the wall, then work out where the hook goes. Measure the work’s height and divide by 2 to find its centre, and mark 145 cm (57 inches) from the floor on the wall.
• Measure from the top of the frame to the tightened wire or hook. Take a frame 86 cm (34 inches) tall: its centre is 43 cm (17 inches) up, and if the wire sits 25 cm (10 inches) from the top of the frame, the hanger goes 18 cm (7 inches) above the 145 cm mark.
• If the frame has D-rings, check they sit 5 to 8 cm (two to three inches) down from the top of the frame, both the exact same distance from the top. Angle the rings inward slightly, which hides the hardware and steadies the picture.
• Nail the picture hooks into your marks and hook the D-rings on them.
• Centre a level on the top of the frame to check it is straight.

Do not trust your eye on the final position. Check it with a tape measure and a spirit level.

Hanging above furniture: sofa, console or bed

Above furniture, the eye-level rule does not always apply. Keep the bottom edge of the frame 10 to 15 cm (4 to 6 inches) above the top of the furniture. Over furniture the centre can sit higher than 145 cm (57 inches), so measure up from the furniture first, and use 145 cm for everything else.

Width matters as much as height. The two-thirds rule says artwork, or a grouping, should be roughly two-thirds the width of the furniture beneath it. If the piece is too small or too high, the arrangement can feel awkward or unanchored. A single oversized piece often creates the most impact above a sofa, though a diptych or a horizontal pair can work too.

Small works can get lost on large walls. Narrow walls between openings, beside doorways or next to windows suit small pictures grouped together. Not every wall needs art, and blank walls give the eye breathing room.

Groups, gallery walls and stairs

Treat several works as one unit. Find the centre of the whole group and hang that point at 145 or 152 cm (57 or 60 inches) from the floor. Keep 5 to 8 cm (2 to 3 inches) between frames and use that one gap throughout the group. A designer’s “golden number” for stacked frames is 5 cm (two inches), with no need to be too rigid. Keep alignment consistent by centring everything around the same visual height or anchor point.

A staircase follows the same standard: the 145 to 152 cm (57 to 60 inch) rule measured above the floor keeps a collection feeling cohesive. In a space tall enough for two works stacked one above the other, make 147 to 152 cm (58 to 60 inches) the midpoint between the two and leave 5 cm (two inches) between the frames.

Art does not always need to be hung. Leaning a framed piece against a mirror on a console or mantel is another option. There is no right and wrong in how a collection is arranged, so a rule that makes a room look wrong can be broken.

Lighting a picture on the wall

Soft lighting such as picture lights, track lighting or wall washers suits art, while harsh overhead lights cause glare and dim light hides detail and colour. Spotlights are best avoided for paper. Do not attach a light fixture to the frame: it produces excessive light levels, tends to create a hot spot on the picture and contributes to the fading of dyes and pigments. Light is the one thing on this wall that does cumulative harm, so the sunlight and humidity guide sets out how much is too much.

Hooks, wire and wall fixings

The hardware must match both the weight of the work and the type of wall. The wrong hardware can damage walls, leave frames crooked or let the work come loose.

Swipe the table sideways to see every column.

Check the weight limit printed on the hardware and be conservative. If it says it holds 14 kg (30 pounds), assume half that, about 7 kg.

For the frame itself, conservation guidance on framing works on paper requires wire strong enough to support its weight. A more secure method is to fix hooks in the wall and slip the frame’s screw eyes over them. Glass is heavier than plastic, and large sheets of glass need sturdy frames and adequate hanging systems. Hooks and wires must carry the weight of the mounting material, frame and glazing. Check an old wire for fraying, rust or breaks, and never carry a framed work by its wire or cord.

Use double fixings, one either side of a flat work, rather than a single central one. This stops the work hanging forward or shifting when someone brushes past. A very large picture will not stay on a plaster wall held by a couple of screws, and if you are inexperienced the advice is to use a slightly bigger fixing than you think necessary. Check for electricity lines and water pipes before drilling. In older houses they do not always run around the edges of walls. For a large painting, the frame itself must also be strong enough to support the weight of the painting.

Where not to hang art

Heat is a hazard. Prints and drawings should hang away from radiators or heating ducts, and keep it off the wall above a fireplace, because pictures hung there are seen coming in for valuation with heat damage. Basements and attics, where temperatures and humidity fluctuate, are poor places for works on paper. High relative humidity makes paper swell, and prolonged exposure raises the risk of chemical degradation and mould. Leave 3 to 6 mm between a painting and its frame so the wood can expand when humidity rises.

Sunlight is the other one. Keep paper works away from windows and skylights, and use curtains, blinds or shutters. Never hang a drawing or watercolour near a window. Watercolours do better in a dim hallway or dark bedroom than in a bright room.

For the lux figures and how glazing, blinds and film cut the damage, see how to protect art from sunlight and humidity.