Inspiring Ways to Work Art into Your Kitchen
Create a visual feast in your kitchen by adding in some art – or creating it from pieces you already have
Kate MacDonald
12 January 2016
Houzz contributor and head curator at Rise Art which showcases, rents and sells great contemporary art from both established artists and emerging talents, hand-picked by experts.
Houzz contributor and head curator at Rise Art which showcases, rents and sells great... More
Try thinking visually about the room in which you create tantalising aromas, delicious flavours and sparkling conversation. The kitchen is the perfect space for visual intrigue – a place both to show off artworks and to consider the artistic qualities inherent in the objects you use every day. Be inspired by these ideas for celebrating form in the most functional of spaces.
Prop on a worktop
The casual leaning of a framed work against the wall lends an intimacy to your kitchen work surfaces. To protect your cherished artworks, though, be sure to display pieces away from the sink and hob.
The casual leaning of a framed work against the wall lends an intimacy to your kitchen work surfaces. To protect your cherished artworks, though, be sure to display pieces away from the sink and hob.
Celebrate the small
Considerations of scale are always important. A diminutive work of art in the perfect place can make as much of a statement as a monumental one.
If you have a petite artwork you love – a sketch, print, photograph or painting – frame it with an oversized mount to give the work a larger presence on your wall.
Considerations of scale are always important. A diminutive work of art in the perfect place can make as much of a statement as a monumental one.
If you have a petite artwork you love – a sketch, print, photograph or painting – frame it with an oversized mount to give the work a larger presence on your wall.
Big up shelving
Art doesn’t have to come from a gallery. A wall of shelving can be a showpiece of tableware, colourful pots and pans, sculptural objects, even shells collected on a beach holiday. For maximum visual intrigue, combine the high and the low, the sacred and the profane. A priceless family heirloom displayed on a shelf next to your toddler’s clay creation is the best way to further family folklore.
Consider the use of colour for your shelving unit. If your kitchen is abundant with colour, choose a muted tone, or if your kitchen is crisply white, plump for a bold hue. The contrast will bring attention to your display.
Read insider tips on creating a gallery wall
Art doesn’t have to come from a gallery. A wall of shelving can be a showpiece of tableware, colourful pots and pans, sculptural objects, even shells collected on a beach holiday. For maximum visual intrigue, combine the high and the low, the sacred and the profane. A priceless family heirloom displayed on a shelf next to your toddler’s clay creation is the best way to further family folklore.
Consider the use of colour for your shelving unit. If your kitchen is abundant with colour, choose a muted tone, or if your kitchen is crisply white, plump for a bold hue. The contrast will bring attention to your display.
Read insider tips on creating a gallery wall
Use it to inspire your kitchen design
An artwork you love can provide colour or thematic inspiration for your kitchen design. This checkered canvas was surely the starting point for the grey and white syncopation of this striking kitchen space.
This principle works across all art and design styles, so be creative in your inspiration. Colour schemes – bright or muted – are easily translated across design aesthetics, so continue the tones of your artwork from the canvas and into your kitchen. Table linens, kitchen tools and appliances – or even just a vase of fresh flowers – all make excellent colourful accents.
An artwork you love can provide colour or thematic inspiration for your kitchen design. This checkered canvas was surely the starting point for the grey and white syncopation of this striking kitchen space.
This principle works across all art and design styles, so be creative in your inspiration. Colour schemes – bright or muted – are easily translated across design aesthetics, so continue the tones of your artwork from the canvas and into your kitchen. Table linens, kitchen tools and appliances – or even just a vase of fresh flowers – all make excellent colourful accents.
Hang in a cluster…
If you plan to display multiple artworks, how will you arrange them on your walls? You could try a cluster filling a feature wall, as seen in this kitchen. It requires quite a big area, but works very well on the blank space you often get at the end of a run of units. By a dining table or above bench seating are other good spots, but with the latter, be sure to hang works high enough that people sitting down won’t be leaning against picture frames.
To get the arrangement just right, lay the works out on the floor to visualise the grouping and spacing before you move them to the wall. It will give you flexibility as you decide which works speak best in proximity to others – and will save you having to reposition your picture hooks on the wall!
Discover ideas and tips for adding art to a baby’s room
If you plan to display multiple artworks, how will you arrange them on your walls? You could try a cluster filling a feature wall, as seen in this kitchen. It requires quite a big area, but works very well on the blank space you often get at the end of a run of units. By a dining table or above bench seating are other good spots, but with the latter, be sure to hang works high enough that people sitting down won’t be leaning against picture frames.
To get the arrangement just right, lay the works out on the floor to visualise the grouping and spacing before you move them to the wall. It will give you flexibility as you decide which works speak best in proximity to others – and will save you having to reposition your picture hooks on the wall!
Discover ideas and tips for adding art to a baby’s room
…or go for a row or grid
If you have a series of prints, paintings or photographs that come as a set, or contain the same colours or themes, a neat row or grid will enhance the sense of continuity.
And check out the gorgeous ceiling-mounted extractor hood in this kitchen – quite the sculptural addition, proving that art can come in many forms.
If you have a series of prints, paintings or photographs that come as a set, or contain the same colours or themes, a neat row or grid will enhance the sense of continuity.
And check out the gorgeous ceiling-mounted extractor hood in this kitchen – quite the sculptural addition, proving that art can come in many forms.
Make it massive
A monumental, wall-sized installation, like the one in this sleek kitchen, can also work beautifully. To balance the bold composition, these homeowners have combined it with expanses of white cabinetry – plus the cheeky addition of red barstools echoing the swathe of red running across the canvas.
Artworks may be robust in design, but they’re fragile in nature. Ensure works that are close to taps, the hob or steam from the oven are properly protected. Or make use of the spaces away from splatter and water, such as above a breakfast nook.
A monumental, wall-sized installation, like the one in this sleek kitchen, can also work beautifully. To balance the bold composition, these homeowners have combined it with expanses of white cabinetry – plus the cheeky addition of red barstools echoing the swathe of red running across the canvas.
Artworks may be robust in design, but they’re fragile in nature. Ensure works that are close to taps, the hob or steam from the oven are properly protected. Or make use of the spaces away from splatter and water, such as above a breakfast nook.
Rev up with textiles
Art doesn’t need to be in a frame: fabric designers are excellent sources of visual extravagance for the kitchen. Whether your taste runs to French toile, William Morris, or perhaps more contemporary prints, such as those by House of Hackney, slip-covered chairs or the cushions on a breakfast nook banquette can lend an arty edge to any space.
Be bold in your colour and pattern choices. Kitchen dining areas are more relaxed than formal dining rooms – treat them as such! Jazzy patterns lead to jazzy conversations…
Art doesn’t need to be in a frame: fabric designers are excellent sources of visual extravagance for the kitchen. Whether your taste runs to French toile, William Morris, or perhaps more contemporary prints, such as those by House of Hackney, slip-covered chairs or the cushions on a breakfast nook banquette can lend an arty edge to any space.
Be bold in your colour and pattern choices. Kitchen dining areas are more relaxed than formal dining rooms – treat them as such! Jazzy patterns lead to jazzy conversations…
Show off sculptural appliances
These bold small appliances are a great example of how kitchen tools can double as sculptural objects. The crisp, white backdrop – not unlike a gallery setting – helps to highlight the brilliantly coloured appliances as the little works of art they are.
These bold small appliances are a great example of how kitchen tools can double as sculptural objects. The crisp, white backdrop – not unlike a gallery setting – helps to highlight the brilliantly coloured appliances as the little works of art they are.
Consider your sightlines
A large-scale, colourful work can anchor a length of space. Don’t shy away from big or very striking pieces: it’s remarkable how artworks that seem daunting in the white cube of a gallery space can often fit neatly into your home.
A large-scale, colourful work can anchor a length of space. Don’t shy away from big or very striking pieces: it’s remarkable how artworks that seem daunting in the white cube of a gallery space can often fit neatly into your home.
Style up with a graphic piece
Graphic works make an excellent addition to a minimalist style and modern kitchen. In a space awash with white, the lines of this work demand the viewer’s attention.
Graphic works make an excellent addition to a minimalist style and modern kitchen. In a space awash with white, the lines of this work demand the viewer’s attention.
Let your kitchen be your artwork
The cabinets and doors in this striking kitchen are visually bound together to create a monolithic, cohesive whole – an artwork in its own right. Not convinced? Check out the work of minimalist sculptor Richard Serra for more inspiration.
To use this look to its best advantage, choose mahogany, ebony or a dark cherry wood stain for your cabinetry, with a lighter colour for the walls and floor to emphasise the contrast of dark and light. And keep your clutter hidden behind all those closed doors!
The cabinets and doors in this striking kitchen are visually bound together to create a monolithic, cohesive whole – an artwork in its own right. Not convinced? Check out the work of minimalist sculptor Richard Serra for more inspiration.
To use this look to its best advantage, choose mahogany, ebony or a dark cherry wood stain for your cabinetry, with a lighter colour for the walls and floor to emphasise the contrast of dark and light. And keep your clutter hidden behind all those closed doors!
Showcase nature
A picture window is called a picture window for obvious reasons – if you have a view you love, make the most of it. Highlight the natural or urban environment outside your walls with glazed doors or large windows, and keep walls pale and plain so they don’t fight with the view.
TELL US…
Do you have artworks in your kitchen – or have you turned an aspect of the space into a piece of art in its own right? Share your tips and photos in the Comments below.
A picture window is called a picture window for obvious reasons – if you have a view you love, make the most of it. Highlight the natural or urban environment outside your walls with glazed doors or large windows, and keep walls pale and plain so they don’t fight with the view.
TELL US…
Do you have artworks in your kitchen – or have you turned an aspect of the space into a piece of art in its own right? Share your tips and photos in the Comments below.
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I have a lot of windows and doors in the kitchen, which really bathes the space in light.unfortunately, that leaves little wall space for art. I hung an old oil painting on the hood over the range (really strong vent hood fan, so negative effects as of yet), a couple of black and white photographs, and a small hand-colored map. The photos have sentimental value (one is of the old wooden pier in Fairhope, AL with a Bay Boat captained by my great grandfather moored at the end, the other is of the Middle Bay Light and was taken by my sister from the bow of my boat). The map details the Confederate defenses of Mobile Bay.