Some people, after buying art, get it home and wonder, “Where on earth am I going to put this?” Or they are concerned as to how their new treasure will work with the color scheme in their home. There are many ways to consider this. Sometimes the artwork in of itself inspires the theme and colors for the rest of the room. If the room already has a set style and colors, such as wall color, furniture and such, some get concerned that a certain painting they fall in love with will coordinate with what is already there. The main thing is to realize is that if you really love the work, it can fit in almost anywhere. It can take a little brainstorming and some helpful hints to get it right, if you don’t already know where to place your artwork, and that’s what this section is for; to help you get ideas for color themes, placement of the artwork and all the goodies that go with that.

Placing Your Artwork
When placing artwork in a room there are several ways to go. If it is a large piece that will not be grouped with others, than an open space, such as above a fireplace mantel, over a couch or chair (8-12 inches above the top of the furniture piece is usual, but let your eye be the guide), is one way to go.

Perhaps the piece is smaller and can be grouped with other paintings of similar size or theme. This can be fun; you can stack them 2-4 paintings, each above the other separated by a few inches, if this is not a wide space you’re looking at putting it in (such as above a side table, or in a short hallway). They can even go from nearly ground level all the way up, if you have a lot of art to place. You see this a lot more often now in designer homes. Or they can be place in a horizontal line in the same manner as was just described for vertical placement. Such as over a long couch, where 4-5 small pieces can be hung in a row, or in a long hallway. Another new idea is to place them leaning on a side table and against the wall, next to a lamp or other decorative objects, or hung just above the table line, which give a very cozy feel to the area.

Even think of your kitchen as a place for art! In spite of the theme, more and more often people are using kitchen spaces to display their art and it really works! These are just a few ideas. More will come and if you have an idea you’d like to share, please do email Marcelle, she would love to hear them!

Does it Matter if the Theme of the Painting Goes with the Décor in a Particular Room?
Not really, these days, unless you designed a room very particularly around a specific theme, such as tropical or Asian or are really set on the room having only certain items in it. The best place for a painting is where you will love to look at it.

What about the colors of my painting coordinating with those in the room where I want to place it?
There can be many combinations of colors in both the artwork and the room you are considering placing it in. If you do want these to coordinate together, there are a couple of ways to go. Here are just a few: The main color of the artwork and of the room can coordinate well, such as a sunset colored painting and a room in gold or warm browns, rusts, or reds. Or you can go with a painting that has an opposite coloring than your room, such as an overall blue-green color in a room that is mostly done in reds, rusts or tan/browns. The painting then works as the accent color in the room. To understand a little about how this works, see color-coordination basics below.

Color-Coordination Basics
This is a fascinating subject and one studied much by fine artists and designers in all fields, such as interior décor, print and web design and in the fashion industry. Even having your colors done for your person is based on knowing about how color works. It is actually a key factor in any of these areas producing quality work. We won’t get too far into this – just enough to get a feel for what colors will work with you artwork and interior.

Here are several color wheels, each showing a grouping of colors that work together. At the opposite of the wheel is the accent color for that particular color scheme. Let’s say you have a room and want to know what colors will work in it, and you like warm earth tones that tend to a reddish hue. If you look at the red color scheme, you will see all of the colors in that range that will work well together. You may pick a red-orange color for the wall (don’t get scared – these also work in shades from very light to very muted. For instance the muted color for a red-orange can be a warm light-colored tan with just a hint of the red-orange.) Your furniture may be upholstered in rusts and deep browns, which are all variations of this color theme. You may have a few decorative objects in a brighter red or even purple, and then you may have an object (or it can be your artwork) in the accent/opposite color. You want the accents colors to be just that: accents, not whole spaces, as accents give punch and add life to the room. Or you artwork can fit in with the red color scheme by having a lot of reds, oranges, or earth-toned color in it. This is just a taste of working with color, but should give you the idea.

What Kind of Frame Should I Get?
With Marcelle La Cour's Originals and Limited Edition Prints, you can choose from the frames she offers (coming soon) or decide to go with one of your own. Choosing frames should be fun not frightening – what should you pick? There are so many to choose from. Your framer can help you with choices that work in your home. Usually if you have a home with contemporary décor, you will not want a heavy, traditional frame for your work. There are frames for every kind of décor. A trip to your framer will give you some good ideas.

New Ideas for Framing – or Not.
There are now even more ways to show your art, and some do not include a frame. A painting with a wrap-around canvas allows one to hang the painting, with no need for a frame as the sides are covered by the canvas. This has become popular. Many of Marcelle's works including her Limited Edition Prints are designed with this wrap-around style, so they can be framed or hung without frame.

Another way to use your frame is to add a wide ribbon that the painting is suspended from, which is a very nice look. Your framer can help you with how to do this, or check back here every once in awhile as Marcelle will eventually have some tips here on how to do these things, and present new ideas as well.

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