How Do You Create a Gallery Wall That Actually Works?

Most gallery walls fail for the same reason: someone bought five prints they liked and nailed them up in whatever order felt right at the time. The result rarely feels curated — it feels accidental. A genuinely good gallery wall is planned the way an interior designer plans it, with deliberate size variation, repeated colour, and real spacing logic behind every gap.

This guide covers exactly how to do that properly. And at the end, the FRAMZE Edit — where we tell you the two places we think gallery walls almost always go wrong, and the one unexpected place they're often perfect.

How Do You Plan a Gallery Wall Layout?

Before anything goes on the wall, it goes on the floor. Lay your pieces out on the ground in the rough shape of your wall first — this is the single biggest difference between a gallery wall that looks intentional and one that looks improvised. You're not hanging frames one at a time and hoping; you're designing a single composition made of multiple pieces.

Start with your largest or most important piece. This becomes your anchor — usually positioned slightly left or right of centre rather than dead-centre, since true symmetry tends to feel static rather than curated. Build outward from there, letting smaller pieces orbit the anchor rather than compete with it.

How Do You Mix Frame Sizes and Orientations?

Identical frame sizes in a grid is the safest option — and usually the most forgettable. A trained eye mixes scale deliberately:

The rule that ties it together: never let two pieces of identical size sit directly beside each other. It's the fastest way to make an intentional arrangement look like a leftover grid.

How Do You Choose Colours and Frames That Work Together?

You don't need every piece to match — you need every piece to share something. The two ways to do this:

Repeat a tone, not a palette. If one piece has a deep charcoal element, look for that same charcoal showing up somewhere in two or three of the other pieces — even faintly. That repetition is what makes a mixed collection of artwork read as one considered group rather than five unrelated prints.

Keep frame finishes consistent. Mixed sizes and orientations work because they create variety. Mixed frame finishes — timber beside black beside white — almost always work against you. Pick one finish and let the artwork inside provide the variation instead.

How Much Space Should You Leave Between Frames?

5–8cm between frames is the professional standard — close enough to read as one composition, wide enough that each piece still has room to breathe. Less than 5cm and the wall feels crowded. More than 8cm and the pieces start to feel like separate, unrelated decisions.

Keep that spacing consistent across the entire arrangement. Inconsistent gaps are one of the fastest ways to make an otherwise well-planned gallery wall look unbalanced.

Where Should a Gallery Wall Go in an Australian Home?

This is where we think most advice gets it wrong — and where the FRAMZE Edit below goes further into it. As a starting principle: gallery walls earn their keep in spaces where people pause and look — hallways, stairwells, entryways, the wall beside a dining table. They're less effective in spaces designed around a single focal point that already has a job to do.

The FRAMZE Edit — hold my champagne 🥂

Here's where we respectfully part ways with the trend.

On gallery walls around the TV: If you're sitting on the sofa actually watching television, you're not looking at the art around the screen — you're watching the screen. Nobody's looking at the art on the wall while they're watching television. But the moment you stand up — when the TV's off, the lights are low, and you're on your feet with a glass of bubbles — that's when the wall needs to do its job. And a TV surrounded by six small frames doesn't do that job. It just looks busy. If your television isn't big enough to own its wall when it's switched off, the fix isn't more frames around it. It's a bigger television.

On gallery walls behind the sofa: Same principle, different wall. We're not against multiple pieces behind a sofa — we're against multiple small pieces behind a sofa. If you're hanging more than two pieces above where people sit and entertain, every one of them still needs real scale. A wall of A5-sized prints behind a three-seater doesn't read as curated. It reads as undersized.

On the wall nobody plans for: Here's the one we think gets overlooked. Every home has that strange, narrow, slightly awkward stretch of wall — beside a doorway, above a console, at the top of a staircase landing — that's too small for a statement piece and too easy to leave bare. That's exactly where a small gallery earns its place. Two or three pieces at 30x30cm or 30x45cm can turn a forgotten corner into the most interesting wall in the room. Small doesn't mean unimportant — it means it knows exactly which wall it belongs on.

On choosing one style for a small gallery: If you're building one of these smaller arrangements, don't mix six different subjects and hope they cohere. Pick one collection and let it carry the whole wall. Our Animals collection works especially well this way — people genuinely spend time in front of it deciding which face is their favourite, which is exactly the kind of wall that rewards a closer look.

Shop the Look

Building a gallery wall with tonal repetition, or a small one-style wall that earns a second look? Explore the FRAMZE collections:

• Abstract Wall Art — bold, textured, and built to own a wall
• Minimalist Wall Art — considered pieces for modern Australian interiors
• Landscape Wall Art — dramatic, oversized, and ready to hang
• Animal Wall Art — from native wildlife to safari portraits
• Portrait Wall Art — figurative art that commands attention
• Urban Wall Art — cinematic street art for spaces with an edge

All FRAMZE pieces are available as fine art prints, stretched canvas and framed canvas. Free delivery Australia-wide. Our smallest formats are available at 30x30cm and 30x45cm — ideal for the unexpected small wall — up to our largest pieces at 102 x 152cm in portrait or landscape orientation and 140 x 140cm in square format.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much space should be left between frames in a gallery wall?
5–8cm is the professional standard — close enough that the pieces read as one composition, wide enough that each piece still has room to breathe. Keep the spacing consistent across the entire arrangement.

Should all the frames in a gallery wall match?
No. Mixing sizes and orientations creates a more considered, designed look than an identical grid. What should stay consistent is the frame finish — pick one and let the artwork provide the variation.

Is it a good idea to put a gallery wall around the TV?
We'd think twice. If your television isn't large enough to own its wall on its own, surrounding it with small frames adds clutter rather than style. A bigger TV solves the problem better than more frames do.

Can you hang a gallery wall behind a sofa?
Yes, but every piece still needs real scale. If you're hanging more than two pieces above a sofa, avoid small or A5-sized prints — undersized pieces behind a large piece of furniture read as an afterthought, not a feature.

What's the best wall in the house for a small gallery wall?
The awkward ones — a narrow stretch beside a doorway, above a console, or along a staircase landing. These spaces are too small for one statement piece but perfect for two or three smaller pieces working together.

Should a gallery wall be all one art style, or mixed?
Both work, but for smaller arrangements, one cohesive style or collection tends to work best — it gives the eye a reason to linger rather than jump between unrelated subjects.

How do you stop a gallery wall from looking cluttered?
Consistent spacing, a repeated colour tone across pieces, and one frame finish throughout. Variety should come from size and orientation — not from mixing finishes, styles and spacing all at once.

What size art works best for a small or awkward wall?
30x30cm and 30x45cm formats are ideal for narrow or unexpected spaces — small enough to fit, substantial enough to feel intentional rather than like an afterthought.

FRAMZE — Next generation wall art. Australian designed, gallery printed, free delivery nationwide.