How to hang artwork

Nothing adds character to a room quite like pictures on the walls, but hanging a frame incorrectly, or in the wrong place, can dramatically undermine their effect and even damage your property. At SohoFrames, we recommend relying on our team of professionals to hang or install artwork in your property rather than doing it yourself. We offer a mix of expertise and a keen aesthetic eye, ensuring that your frames will be hung in the right place, at the right level, and as securely as possible.

The principles of hanging artwork are the same, whether it is a single frame or multiple pictures. However, there are really no hard and fast rules and the main factors will be the number and size of the frames, the size of the space you want to hang them, and most importantly, how it looks.

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Where should I hang my artwork?

The first thing to decide is where ideally you would like the frame displayed. You’ll need to bear in mind, though, that some locations are better than others. For example, bathrooms can cause problems with the art itself, and hanging original artworks in the more humid rooms of your home can destabilise them, especially paintings. Likewise, hanging artwork over heat sources like radiators can also lead to issues, though these are often easy to fix with heat guards, such as fitting a small shelf over the radiator.

Conversely, hanging on a cold outside-facing wall can cause issues with moisture, as the back of the frame will get cold during winter months, while the front of the frame will remain warm due to the temperature of the room. If you’re looking to hang your artwork on a wall like this, we would advise using an extra thick backing board, which will help insulate the artwork from these temperature differences.

What is the right fixture for my frame?

Once you’ve decided on where you want to showcase your artwork, then it’s time to hang the frame. However, it’s not as simple as hammering in a hook. You’ll need to determine the right fixings for what your wall is made of — brick, concrete, stud, etc. — as well as the weight of the picture frame. A professional installer will be able to offer you the best advice, and at SohoFrames, we offer a fully insured service for installing our picture frames.

We are often asked about hanging strips, and our advice is simple: avoid them if you can. Although they do work, our work will only be guaranteed for any frames which have been hung with proper mechanical fixings, such as screws or pins. A securely hung picture frame will give you peace of mind about your artwork, and any holes which may remain when you leave a rented property can always be filled in or painted over. That said, if one of our clients is adamant about using hanging strips, we can supply and install them, with a signed disclaimer from the client.

We use different types of fixings on both the frame and the wall, depending on the situation. On the frame, we tend to rely on strap or square hangings, which guarantee security without stressing the frame or causing it to lean, which is common with wired picture frames. This will keep your pictures firmly against the wall and prevent them from being accidentally dislodged.

When it comes to hanging frames on plaster walls, we use either screws and rawl plugs — hooks secured with specially hardened pins — or hardwall fixings, which are plastic hooks attached with four slender pins. This decision will be based on the weight of the frame, and the type of wall in question. For example, we may use butterfly or wormscrew fixings on partition walls with a cavity behind them rather than the fixings mentioned above. Meanwhile, if you need a picture displayed in commercial premises like a pub, bar, or club, we can also supply security fixings that lock the frame to the wall and prevent dislodgement.

At SohoFrames, we understand that no two jobs are the same when it comes to hanging artwork, which we offer separately from our expert framing services. If you’re interested in having your frames hung by the best in the business, or have more questions about your specific artwork, feel free to drop us a line today.

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