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The placement of portraits in relation to the room’s furnishings is critical when their purpose is to create a dramatic decorative focal point. Whether the artwork is the central component of a room concept or an isolated accessory, all of the elements of design—color, style, composition, and size—must work together to complete the decorative statement.

Achieving Color Harmony:
The portrait’s overall color theme should blend with or complement the room’s color palette. Carefully chosen clothing and background elements can add richness to the room’s color scheme.

Selecting A Style:
The decorative intent of the room in which you plan to display portraiture will set the design tone for the portrait and help in your selection of clothing and setting.

Determining Size:
An appropriately sized portrait is one that dominates the space in which it is hung, but does not appear to crowd that space. When planning an individual portrait or a collection of images to be hung together, be sure to establish whether the space lends itself better to a vertical or horizontal composition.


Choosing The Framing:
Truly the “finishing touch” of portraiture, framing must be both complementary to the image—so as not to distract the viewer’s attention from the subject matter—and an appropriate accent for the room’s furnishings.

Choosing Subject Matter:
Portrait images communicate how we feel about ourselves, our world, and our loved ones. Their subject matter and settings are limited only by imagination: children as they grow, family times or events, artistic personal statements—all are appropriate subjects for decorative portraiture.