Most people hang a picture and leave it there for ten years. After the first month they stop seeing it. It becomes part of the wall.
There is an easy way to keep art fresh, and it costs nothing if you already own more than you can hang. Change the pictures with the seasons. In Japan there is a long tradition of doing exactly this: a single scroll hangs in an alcove and is changed through the year to suit the month and the occasion. The principle works in any home.
Why rotate
- You see the art again. A picture that returns after six months is noticed.
- The room changes with the year. A cool, snowy picture feels right in January and a bright one in July.
- It refreshes a room for nothing. No paint and no new furniture.
- It is kinder to the art. Each piece spends part of the year out of the light, which slows fading. See sun fading.
- You can own more than you have wall for.
How much to change
You don't have to rehang the house four times a year.
- One wall. Choose a single spot, such as above the sofa, the mantel or the hallway, and change the picture there. This is the simplest approach and has the most effect for the effort.
- One room. The living room or the bedroom.
- Twice a year. A warm-season set and a cool-season set, swapped in spring and autumn. That is enough for most homes.
Keep some pieces constant. A home needs a few fixed points.
The seasons
Autumn
The light goes golden and then goes early. Rooms turn inward. Darker, moodier, richer pictures suit it.
- Forests and mist. Lost Forest Magic Portal. See enchanted forest art.
- The gothic, for October. Blue Crow, Blue Flame Skull. See Halloween wall art that works all year.
- Night cities in the rain. Cyberpunk Slick Street.
Winter
Short days and long evenings under lamps. Two approaches work. Lean into it, with snow and ice. Or push against it, with warmth and colour.
- Snow and frost. Cosmic Deer, Frost Owl, Cosmic Frosted City Skyline. These suit the holidays without being Christmas pictures, so they can stay up until March.
- The aurora and the night sky. Star Valley. See northern lights art.
- Warm neon against the dark. Japanese City Punk FX.3, in red and pink, warms a room in February.
Spring
The light returns and the windows open. Lighter, fresher, more colourful pictures suit it.
- Pale and airy. Blue Sky Dragon, a dragon in white cloud. The blue dragon is the traditional emblem of spring in East Asia.
- Soft colour. Liquid Metal Mist Pink.
- Fresh green. Laser Cat, on its mint ground, is a cheerful spring piece.
- Mist lifting. Blue Mountain Fog.
Summer
Long, bright days. Either bold colour to match the season, or cool pictures to offset the heat.
- Bright and saturated. Trippy Holographic, Koi Attack, Hand of the Stars.
- Cool and watery. Electric Water, or the snow pieces again. A picture of ice is refreshing in August.
- Night skies, for the season of sitting outside late. Light Nebula, Space Cityscape on the Shore.
Summer sun is strong. Check that the wall you use isn't in direct light at this time of year.
Or rotate by temperature
If four seasons is too many, think of two.
- The warm half of the year: cool-coloured art. Blues, teals, whites. It makes a room feel fresher.
- The cold half: warm-coloured art. Reds, pinks, oranges, golds. It makes a room feel warmer.
See warm vs cool colours in wall art.
Make the swap easy
If changing a picture means filling holes and drilling new ones, you won't do it. Set things up so that it takes five minutes.
- Use the same size. If the pieces that share a spot are the same size, with the hanger in the same place, the new one goes on the old hook. This is the most useful single thing you can do.
- A picture ledge. A narrow shelf fixed once. Pictures lean on it and are changed in seconds, with no fixings at all.
- Lean on furniture. A canvas on a mantel, a sideboard or a chest of drawers needs no hook.
- A hanging rail. A track at the top of the wall, with cords and movable hooks.
- One frame, several prints. A frame that opens at the back lets you change the poster inside. Posters are cheap and store flat, which makes them the easiest format to rotate. See the poster size guide.
- Tapestries. They hang from hooks or clips, weigh nothing and fold into a drawer. A room's largest piece of art can be changed in two minutes.
- Desk mats. The same idea at a desk. A second mat is an inexpensive way to change the look of a setup for the season. See desk mat and wall art pairings.
Change the accents with it
When the picture changes, change one or two small things to match: a cushion cover, a throw, a vase. Take the colour from the new picture. The room then looks as though it was arranged round it. See pulling accent colours from a piece of art into the room.
Storing what is off the wall
- Canvases: upright, face to face with clean paper between, corners protected, under a cotton sheet, in a dry cupboard.
- Posters: flat in a portfolio, with a sheet between each.
- Framed prints: upright, wrapped in paper or a blanket.
- Tapestries: washed, dried and rolled or loosely folded.
- Not in the attic, the garage or a damp basement.
See how to store posters and prints and canvas care.
A simple calendar
- Early March: spring pieces up.
- Early June: summer pieces up. Check the sun on the wall.
- Mid-September: autumn pieces up.
- Late November: winter pieces up, in time for visitors.
Tie it to something you already do, such as changing the clocks or putting away the winter coats. When each piece comes down, dust it and check the back before it goes into storage.
Building a rotation over time
You don't need four sets at once. Start with what you have. Add one piece for the season you like best. Buy for a size you already own, so that it fits the existing hook. In a couple of years you will have a small collection and a house that changes with the year. See starting a collection: one canvas now, a wall over time.
If you are ordering for a particular season, allow for making and delivery: 2 to 7 business days for production and 3 to 7 for US delivery.
Browse the canvas art, poster prints and tapestries collections.