A gallery wall can turn a plain room into one that feels finished and personal. It can also turn into a wall full of extra nail holes if you start without a plan. The good news is that a few simple measurements do most of the work. This guide covers how high to hang art, how far apart to space frames, how wide the arrangement should be, and the layouts that work in real Australian homes.
Start with the wall and the furniture
Before you think about which frames go where, look at what the art will sit above. Most gallery walls hang over a sofa, bed, sideboard or console, and the furniture sets the scale.
A reliable guide is to make the whole arrangement about two thirds the width of the furniture below it. For a 210 cm sofa, that means art spanning roughly 140 cm in total. For a 150 cm queen bed, aim for about 100 cm. Go much narrower and the art looks lost. Go wider than the furniture and the wall can feel top-heavy.
If the wall has no furniture, such as a hallway or stairwell, use the wall itself as your guide and leave comfortable breathing space at each end.
To save on maths, our free Gallery Wall Width Calculator works out the target width for you. Enter your furniture width and it gives you a clear starting point.
How high to hang art
The most common mistake with wall art is hanging it too high. When art floats near the ceiling, it feels disconnected from the room and is harder to enjoy.
The eye-level rule
Aim for the centre of the artwork to sit about 145 to 152 cm from the floor. This roughly matches average standing eye level and is a height commonly used in galleries. For a single piece, measure to the middle of the frame. For a gallery wall, treat the whole arrangement as one large piece and place the centre of the group at that height.
This rule holds even with high ceilings. It can be tempting to hang art higher to fill the space, but keeping it near eye level makes the room feel grounded. If you want to fill more height, make the arrangement taller rather than lifting it.
Above a sofa, bed or sideboard
When art hangs above furniture, the furniture becomes the anchor. Leave about 15 to 25 cm between the top of the sofa back and the bottom edge of the lowest frame. This keeps the art and sofa reading as one connected group, while leaving room so heads do not bump frames.
The same gap works well above a bedhead or a sideboard. If you have a tall bedhead, measure from the top of it. If this nudges the centre slightly off the eye-level guide, that is fine.
How far apart to space frames
Keep the gaps between frames at about 5 to 8 cm. Closer than 5 cm and the frames start to feel cramped. Wider than 8 cm and the pieces stop reading as a group and start to look like separate artworks that happen to share a wall.
Consistency matters more than the exact number. Pick one gap, such as 6 cm, and use it everywhere. A small offcut of timber or cardboard cut to that width makes a handy spacer while you hang.
Gallery wall layouts that work
A few tried and true layouts suit most rooms.
The clean row
Two or three frames of the same size hung in a straight line, with equal gaps. This is the simplest layout to get right and suits living rooms, bedrooms and long hallways. The Still Horizons Set of 3 suits this layout well, with three calm abstract landscapes that sit comfortably together above a sofa or bed.
The pair
Two matching frames side by side are ideal above a bed, a narrow console or either side of a window. The Night Garden Pair brings dark, moody Waratah and Gumnut botanicals to a bedroom, where the deeper tones suit low evening light.
The grid
Four or six same-sized frames in a tight grid, such as two rows of two or two rows of three. Grids look tidy and modern, and they rely on precise, even spacing. Use a level and measure every gap.
The mixed salon wall
A relaxed arrangement of different sizes and orientations. To keep it from looking random:
- Start with your largest piece as the anchor, placed slightly off centre or in the middle.
- Build outwards, balancing larger pieces on one side with two or three smaller ones on the other.
- Keep the outer edges forming a rough rectangle, so the group has a clear overall shape.
- Keep the gaps consistent, even when the frame sizes vary.
Mixing sizes without the chaos
Mixing sizes can look beautiful, but it helps to give the eye something that ties the group together. Choose at least one common thread:
- Frame finish. Using the same natural timber frame throughout instantly makes different sizes feel related.
- Colour palette. Prints that share tones, such as sand, clay and stone, sit together easily. The seven prints in the Still Horizons collection share a palette of sand, clay, stone, eucalyptus, terracotta, ochre and midnight blue, so they combine easily.
- Spacing. Equal gaps bring order to a mix of shapes.
Spread visual weight evenly. Darker or busier pieces feel heavier, so avoid clustering them all on one side.
Use paper templates before you drill
This is the step that saves the most frustration. Paper templates let you try a layout on the actual wall before you commit to a single hole.
- Trace around each frame onto paper, such as butcher's paper or old wrapping paper, and cut it out.
- On the back of each frame, measure from the top edge down to the hanging point. If there is a wire, pull it taut first. Mark that point on the matching template.
- Stick the templates to the wall with painter's tape or low-tack tape.
- Step back, check the overall width and height, and adjust until it feels balanced. Leaving it up for a day or two is a good way to be sure.
- Hammer the hook or drill straight through the marked point on the paper, then tear the paper away.
Tools and hanging hardware
- A tape measure, pencil and spirit level (or a level app on your phone)
- Painter's tape for templates
- Hooks or fixings suited to your wall. Plasterboard, brick and timber each need different hardware, so check the packaging and the weight of your frames.
- If you rent, check your lease before putting holes in the wall, and look at removable hooks rated for the weight of each frame.
Ideas by room
In the living room, a row of three or a mixed wall above the sofa is the classic choice. Browse our living room art for calm pieces that suit larger walls. In the bedroom, softer and darker tones help the space feel restful, and a pair above the bed keeps things simple. See our bedroom art for ideas. Hallways, entries and home offices often suit a single piece or a tight pair, so the wall does not feel crowded in a narrow space. Our entryway and office art has pieces sized for these smaller walls.
A great gallery wall comes down to a few numbers: centre at about 145 to 152 cm, 5 to 8 cm between frames, around two thirds the width of the furniture, and 15 to 25 cm above a sofa. Start with the width calculator, cut some paper templates, and take your time. The wall will feel calm and considered from the day you hang it.