When choosing a painting for your living room, it can have many functions. It can be a small painting above a sideboard, or a large painting above the sofa. It can also be a painting in a cozy nook with an armchair, where the painting gathers and gives atmosphere. What the painting should be able to do and what mood you want in your living room.
Large painting for the living room
In a living room, the large paintings are usually placed above either the sofa or the dining table. Where the large paintings are located, it is also obvious that the large paintings will happen.
In a living room there are several functions. You come to the painting on foot, but in the living room you will often sit down when you look at the painting. It has an impact on how high you have to hang the painting.
read more about my large paintings here
Painting above the dining table in the living room
An obvious place in the living room to hang a large painting is above the dining table. A dining table is often placed slightly inside the room or up against a wall. A large dining table is a large surface in the living room, and it is obvious to give the tabletop a more lively counterpoint in the form of a painting. The dining table is also where you gather and sit with family and friends, so there must be a lively energy. If the dining table in the living room is placed against a wall, it can be nice with a large square painting at the end of the table. If the dining table is placed parallel to the wall, an elongated painting will often work best, as it will harmonize nicely with the lines of the table.
Painting above the sofa in the living room
The biggest painting you have in your home is often in your living room above the sofa. This is usually where we hang the main work of the home. We spend many hours on the sofa, and this is where it is most important that it feels cozy to sit in the evening. Therefore, it is also important that a painting above the sofa in the living room works in several types of lighting. It must look great both in daylight and when the sun goes down and the lights are switched on. In the living room, we often have a more yellow light in the lamps, and this has an impact on how the colors in the painting are seen.
Above a sofa, a painting should not hang so high, as the painting should be placed so that it belongs to the furniture it is surrounded with. You can read more about how to place a painting above a sofa in your living room at the link below.
See more about how to choose a painting above the sofa here
Colorful paintings for the living room
How colorful the paintings in the living room should be is a matter of taste. Some like the colors turned all the way up, and others prefer the colors to be more toned down. In my paintings, the background is often very calm and toned down in color, where the abstractions have more dynamism. It gives a calm expression that goes well with the Nordic decor, which many here in Denmark prefer, with tones from nature in white, grey, brown and beige tones. My inspiration is nature, and I love the calm earth tones. In my paintings, there is often a little yellow mixed into the background color. It makes the painting a little warmer and it feels a little like the sun is always shining on it. This prevents the background from looking bluish when there is cold light in the room. Notice, for example, that your white walls appear bluish in some light and slightly yellow in other light. This is the effect that I actively work with in my colors when I paint a painting. A painting must feel good to live with, and especially the large paintings help to set the whole atmosphere in the living room.
Dark or light paintings in the living room?
Should you choose dark or light paintings in the living room? Yes, it all depends on what atmosphere you are looking for. The dark ones bring the room together, create coziness, and can give a bit of a cave feeling in the living room, where the light paintings emphasize the light, lightness and open up the room.
The very dark paintings often look best on light walls. However, you have to be careful about placing a very dark painting on a completely white wall, as the contrast can be very harsh. Here it can be nice, with, for example, a beige or gray wall, as it makes the look softer.
The bright paintings can be super nice on both light and dark walls in the living room. On darker walls, the wall color will act as a kind of frame, and make the painting stand out more in the living room. If you choose a painting with a white background on a white wall, the painting will become less dominant, and it may be an idea to choose to go up in size if you want the painting to stand out more.
