Home Lighting

If you have art in your home, it is important to display it properly, and this means choosing appropriate lighting. While it might be tempting to hang your artwork where it will be illuminated by direct sunlight, avoid the temptation; this will only damage your art, causing the colors to fade out. Instead, put your art on a wall that receives northern sunlight, cover it with UV-protective glass, and choose  indirect, artificial light that will allow you to continue to enjoy your art for years to come. Read farther to discover more tips on lighting the art in your home.

Attaining Even Lighting

When choosing lighting to highlight your art, mantle lighting or recessed lighting can be ideal. Mantle lighting provides gentle, even lighting from below an artwork, while recessed lighting has a similar effect from above. These types of lighting are also ideal because they don’t feature a visible external fixture. Fixtures can draw your eye away from the art, which is of course to be avoided. Frame lights are another good option for small pieces of art, and will help to highlight details.

The Best Bulbs

It is important to select your bulb carefully when displaying artwork. For art that is heavy on reds and golds, an incandescent bulb is an ideal choice. This is because these bulbs give off a more reddish light that will highlight the work and enhance these colors, making reddish hues glow. For other art, choose cooler rendering sources such as fluorescent.

It is also important to position your lights so that there is no glare off of the art. Glare is typically minimized by positioning the light source at a 30-degree angle.

Put Your Art Center Stage

Of course, when you are displaying art, the small expanse of wall is not the only part of the room that is lighted, but rather there is ambient light throughout the space. How, then, to set your art apart using lighting? The key is to choose display lighting that is three times as bright as the ambient lighting in the room. This ratio will draw visitors to your art, highlighting it as a focal point of the room.