Using Gallery Wall Ideas to Showcase Your Style

By Erica White

Gallery walls are one of my go-to design features. If a wall feels empty, there’s a good chance a gallery wall is the perfect solution.

Why do I love gallery walls so much?

Practically speaking, they are an easy way to fill up space on a blank wall. But more importantly they add character and visual interest. And they always add a personal element to the space - whether you use family photos or art that speaks to you, what you choose to display is a showcase of who you are. Because of this, I find that gallery walls, no matter the style, add comfort to a space.

Gallery walls are a great way to display family or other personal photos with a curated look.

My family-history gallery wall in a boxed layout adds character to this large empty wall

One of my favorite gallery wall themes is family history. Over the years, I have been adding on to a large family history wall in my own home to display photos of my family through generations. And recently, I have installed a gallery wall at a wonderful client’s house to display wedding photos of her family going back to her grandparents and ending with her children.

Art including paintings, photographic art, blueprints, sketches, and even sculptures can be used to make beautiful gallery walls. The colors and boldness of the art are selected to compliment the style of the space.  

Typically, people choose to display personal photos or art in their gallery walls. In more eclectic or country farmhouse spaces, we often mix art and photos. 

A mixture of smaller frames works well with a variety of styles, while oversized frames of the same size can create a more contemporary or clean look.

This gallery wall with oversized frames displays photos from a client’s favorite beach

Using frames that are all the same or similar in color and texture, works great in a variety of styles, and is my go-to for traditional style spaces. However, if my client has an eclectic or country farmhouse style, a variety of frames in varying colors and textures is key. For country farmhouse styles, it is best to keep within a similar wood tone family. But for eclectic styles, almost nothing is off limits.

This eclectic gallery wall features a variety of media and frame styles

I use three main layouts for gallery walls: grid, mixed, and boxed. 

Grid layouts utilize frames of the same size arranged in a row or set of rows with equal spacing between the frames. This creates a very organized look and is great for contemporary spaces but can be used in almost any style space. I like to use the same style frames when doing a grid layout.

(Left) A small gallery wall adds personality to a sterile spot with a client’s favorite prints, (Center) This gallery wall is laid out in a grid arrangement and is ready to add family photos, (Right) This grid layout gallery wall displays family photos and photographic art in a colorful traditional living room

Mixed layouts use a variety of frame sizes to fill a space. They lend a more causal feel. Mixed layouts are great for eclectic and country farmhouse styles and make it easy to play with lots of patterns, colors and textures. 

This farmhouse style gallery wall displays wedding photos for generations and has space for future photos to be added

Mixed layouts can also be great for a variety of style spaces depending on the frames and media chosen. I like to use the same or similar style frames in traditional and contemporary spaces.

(Left) This mixed layout gallery wall displays children’s artwork and fits with a traditional style space by mixing similar color and style frames, (Right) This mixed layout gallery wall over a bench is ready for family photos

Boxed layouts (as shown in my family-history gallery wall above) add a more organized feel to a mixed layout. With this layout, I line up frames of varying sizes to create a perimeter and then fill in the center. This is great if you have a lot of media of a variety of sizes to work with, but a mixed layout feels too cluttered. 

Designing a beautiful gallery wall that fits your space and your style can be very tricky. If you are looking to install a gallery wall yourself, but feel overwhelmed, I find it best to first gather the art and/or photos that you will be displaying. Once you have the size and quantity of pieces to work with, you can then search for inspiration images online to see what layouts will work for your pieces and fit your style best.

*All photographs credit: Erica White

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