Art Crush: Incorporating Artwork into Luxury Interior Design

Artwork has a massive make-or-break quality for any home and for any style. When done well, it has the power to take a space to a swoon-worthy level that everyone will be crushing on.

But when done poorly — or as a DIY afterthought — there’s nothing that will make you want to break up with a room faster. Even the most beautiful art piece can be an eyesore in the wrong setting!

That’s why in luxury interior design, artwork is always an early consideration; it should be built into the plan from the get-go — and that doesn’t just go for seasoned art collectors and curators with many pieces waiting in the wings for their wall time.

Well-placed and intentionally selected art is for anyone and everyone. At our luxury interior design firm, we take a holistic interior home design approach when sequencing and coordinating the symphony of what happens in every square inch of any given space — including art.

Here are some considerations we recommend for incorporating artwork into luxury interior design to ensure it’s always the perfect match.

Choose Art that’s Proportional

One problem we see with a DIY approach to artwork is that any given piece is generally the wrong scale. It’s not sized well — or in proportion — to what it’s hung or placed above, next to, or near. Many times, the piece is just too small for the available real estate! The “visual weight” of artwork must match the space. Proportion demands our attention — whether it’s one big piece that scales to a wall, a triptych set, or something else entirely.

For example, for a massive two-story wall in a great room interior design, we cast a large, modern canvas above the linear, contemporary fireplace. The size is perfectly scaled while the horizontal orientation creates a feeling of intimacy in the sitting area — it has the effect of visually lowering the two-story ceiling in this area!

Explore Art that Contrasts and Complements

With artwork, there are times when an eclectic approach will serve well — and there are times when it won’t.

You can put unusual art bedfellows together and feel less restrained if you have clean, neutral gallery walls — and a minimal color story in the rest of the room. But, if there is a lot of color, tone, and texture already present and accounted for, there’s more need to exercise caution when intentionally selecting art. So much is based on context!

That’s why we like to say it’s important to explore art that contrasts and complements a space. It doesn’t have to “match” — or even be in the same style — but it does have to all flow together.

Picture this: A classic design moment that brings clear design roots, cast against crisply modern artwork. What an interior design feast that is – a dramatic delight.

There is fantastic, layered nuance and excitement when we mix the classics with a more contemporary edge in luxury interior design. The eye-catching allure is undeniable. Ultimately, creating design tension with artwork between two opposing elements — traditional and modern — creates unmissable excitement.

Indulge in Art’s Texture and Color

Art can act as a main color story to set the stage in a more neutral space — just as neutral art that’s highly textural can create visual dynamism in a room that’s already flooded with color or pattern.

At IDH, we love bringing in a bold and beautiful — and even unexpected — flourish to surprise and delight in a room. Take our gigantic great room, again. It’s so expansive, it can carry two bold, statement-making works. The rush of cerulean blues in the abstract piece on the opposite wall introduces vibrant color as an eye-catching focal point for the more neutral palette of the space.

A foyer or entryway interior design is another interesting space to explore the impact of art. Generally, there are fewer furnishings in the foyer, so the color and texture of artwork becomes all the more integral. Art that’s in scale and brings intentional color makes a small space suddenly so much more intriguing.

In one home we recently overhauled, the clients wanted to make the most impact in a bedroom while keeping some of the existing furnishings. Would the heavy, wood-frame bed have been our first choice? No, but once we found the paint-splash mural for the main wall behind the bed, we knew we could reimagine the space with hip and handsome appeal.

—

One last thing: While you do have to carve out an appropriate budget line for artwork in your design plan, you absolutely do not need a trust fund to make it happen. With art, it’s not about what you spend, but about what you do with what you spend.

At IDH, we love consulting with our clients on making impeccable art selections that not only bring their luxury interior design to life but that also align with their unique design fingerprint. It truly is an art form! 

Take a look at our portfolio for more inspiration on how we’ve used art in luxury interior design.