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It was a job
for a professional: 21 Redouté rose prints to be hung in precise
alignment, with a picture rail in the way. Enter Greg MacInnes of Hanging
Around.
"We painted the rail the same colour
as the wall and its width determined the space between the horizontal
rows. Now it virtually disappears." Hooks were installed at different
heights for each picture. "They always look exactly the same, but the
height of each picture can vary by a millimetre or two, depending on the
length of the hanging wire. If the framer has done them all on the same
day, he will generally stretch the wire to the same amount. But an
assistant next to him will do it differently."
A common pitfall, says Greg, is to hang the
picture too high. "A rule of thumb is to have the centre of the
painting at eye level. With a grouping - rather than have the tops or
bottoms of the frames in line - imagine an invisible line through the
centre. For example, with a tall portrait and three small landscapes
stacked next to it, the central landscape would be in line with the middle
of the portrait. If it's a 'rogues' gallery it can be less formal,
randomly spaced." Greg plays with the composition by laying out the
pictures on the floor first.
"With upholstered walls, one pulled thread
will be seen right across the wall." An incision is made in the
fabric and the padding eased aside as the hole is drilled.
Remounting, reframing and rehanging pictures will
transform a house. "So will mirror," says Greg. "It brings
in light and the reflections make a space seem bigger and more welcoming.
Mirror on mirror is extremely difficult - being glass, you can't just
drill into it like brickwork." To hang a heavy antique mirror on a
mirrored wall, Greg had the mirrored panels removed and two holes
professionally drilled, and hung the antique mirror on two bolts for
safety. A final tip: distressed frames rather than bright gold or new
timber is the trend. BETSY BRENNAN |
Clockwise from top left: a
picture rail 'disappears' between rose prints framed by Peter Naef; quilt
from Catherine's Cottage, Gordon, NSW. Portraits, prints and mirrors. A
mirror on an upholstered wall at Leslie Walford Interiors. Greg MacInnes
carefully handles the gold frame of a Robert Dickerson work. Mirror on mirror.
Hanging Around, Sydney, 0418 416 444. |
