How many times have you seen this?  A nice work of art coupled with a nicely arranged table top, but it’s just not satisfying to the eye.

The above photo exhibits a design problem concerning scale and proportion – simply put, the painting it too small for the space and is too high above the sideboard.  This causes a large space between the objects on the top and the painting and prevents the area from looking unified.

Here in the second photo, there is a larger painting more in scale with the furniture, wall, and tabletop objects.

The painting is hung just a few inches above the furniture (think sofa, bed, or chest..it all works the same) creating unity.

The platters, plates, lamps slightly overlap the view of the frame, again creating a cohesive whole without obscuring the art work.

You say you don’t have a large painting?  I’ll write another entry on alternatives for those spaces that require something large.  See you next time!