Justify reasons for hanging art in narrow places

DEAR GAIL: In our home we have wonderful views of the Strip but very little wall space for any of our artwork. At the most, there might be 30 inches in two parts of our family room. Of course the view is our artwork, but I do have a couple of pieces I would like to hang. Are there any rules about how large a wall needs to be to hang artwork? -- Devra.

DEAR DEVRA: It doesn't matter if there are rules; rules can be broken, at least in design. When I teach my redesign class, there are specific steps and rules that my students learn. I tell them that during the time they are with me, they have to follow the steps and rules. Then, once they are home, they can break the rules as long as they understand the rule and why it is being broken.

There are no rules set in stone anywhere about artwork and wall space that I know of. But, what I teach is that if a wall is less than 30 inches wide, I don't hang anything on it unless it is the only place in the room for artwork. What I find so often is that we feel we have to hang something if there is an open space. That includes over doorways, under windows, over windows, the 12 inches next to the door and any other place where a nail can go. When we do this, it leaves no place for your eye to rest, or even to take in what has been hung on the walls.

Think about your visits to one of the many local restaurants that has its walls covered with items. It's fun to sit there and look around, but I know my eyes get tired after a while and I don't see anything. The same thing happens when you do this in your own home.

With your room, since you have such an amazing view, I would be careful to make sure that what you hang will not take away from that. If the wall space for art is on the same wall as the view, I probably wouldn't hang anything. You don't want your art to compete with your view. If the area is in another part of the room, hang away.

For someone who doesn't have this kind of view, but just a wall of windows, something can be hung on the window wall. Unfortunately, with homes so close together, sometimes all that a window wall looks out on is the neighbor's wall. So, in that case, you really do want your eyes to go to the art.

The accompanying pictures show two very different areas. One is in a kitchen nook and the only wall space was this area between the window and the door. The client had these pictures and wanted to find a place for them. With a narrow wall space, you are always looking for a way to create vertical artwork since you are working in a vertical area, and the pictures were the perfect size.

The other photo shows a fun project that my students did. The client obviously had a collection of rolling pins, which had just been sitting in a basket. So, the students got creative and hung them with fishing wire up the fireplace. It makes a great focal point when coming into the room.

You don't have to be afraid of hanging artwork on a narrow wall. Just make sure that it is really needed and that you are not just filling space.

Gail Mayhugh, owner of GMJ Interiors, is a professional interior designer and author of a book on the subject. Questions may be sent by e-mail to: gail@gmjinteriors.com. Or, mail to: 7380 S. Eastern Ave., No. 124-272, Las Vegas, NV 89123. Her Web address is: www.GMJinteriors.com.