How to decorate with landscape prints at home

Welcome to my blog, I am a professional cartoonist, illustrator, artist and writer. My site here is intended to promote a range of works that I think will look good on the wall. Included on my site is not just my own work, but some works by other artists whose work I love and hope to bring to a wider audience. I hope you enjoy your tour of my site and welcome any feedback. Prints are fulfilled by The Print Space for prints on paper, they are one of the UK's premier fine art print companies, and there is also the option of buying some images printed onto canvas, these are fulfilled by Printumo. All prints are available worldwide.

If you are wondering how to decorate with landscape prints, start by thinking less about filling an empty patch of wall and more about what you want to look at every day. A good landscape print changes the feeling of a room. It can bring in weather, distance, colour, memory or a bit of useful visual calm. It can also be wonderfully odd, especially when the landscape includes a battered shed, a great sweep of corrugated iron or the blunt geometry of an old industrial building.

Choose a landscape with some character

There is nothing wrong with a pretty view, but the best landscape art usually gives you something more to return to. A lane disappearing behind a hedge, a line of trees against a low sky or a riverside building with peeling paint all have a quiet story in them. That is often what makes a print work long after the initial purchase.

Much of my own work is inspired by the Gloucestershire countryside and by the sites, structures and changing light around the River Severn. It is a landscape that can be soft and open one minute, then unexpectedly severe. Old industrial buildings sit alongside fields and water. Sheds, fences, rusting metal and corrugated iron catch the light in ways that are far more interesting than they have any right to be.

These subjects work well in homes because they are recognisable without being obvious. They have atmosphere, but they do not demand that a room be styled around them. A charcoal drawing of a shed may suit a quiet study; a coloured rural scene can give a neutral sitting room a proper focal point.

How to decorate with landscape prints by room

The room should influence the mood of the image, although there are no fixed rules. In a living room, choose a print with enough presence to hold its own across the room. Broad skies, strong shapes and a clear contrast between dark and light all help. A larger paper print above a sofa can be more effective than several small, unrelated pictures trying to do the same job.

For a bedroom, gentler landscape prints tend to work well. This does not mean they need to be pale or sentimental. A moody river scene, a winter field or a restrained black and white drawing can make the room feel settled without becoming dull. Put it where you can see it from the bed if possible. Art deserves better than being placed only for visitors.

Hallways are ideal for more unusual subjects. They are transitional spaces, so a print of an old building, a collection of sheds or a dramatic piece of metalwork can give the area a little surprise and personality. A narrow vertical composition can be especially useful where wall space is limited.

Kitchens and dining areas can take a bolder approach. This is where a landscape with stronger colour, graphic lines or an urban edge earns its keep. I am also drawn to the huge advertising signs around Los Angeles - they have a brilliant mixture of scale, faded colour and visual confidence. These images are available as photographic prints and on canvas, and they can look particularly good in rooms that already have wood, brick, steel or a slightly industrial feel.

Get the scale right before worrying about colour

The most common mistake with wall art is buying a print that is too small. A landscape print above a sofa, sideboard or bed needs to look intentional rather than as though it has been left floating in the middle of the wall. As a rough guide, aim for an artwork that is around half to two-thirds the width of the furniture below it. It does not have to be exact, but it gives the print enough authority.

A large canvas works well where you want a single, confident image and do not want the distraction of a frame. Canvas has a more physical presence and suits landscapes with texture - weathered timber, painted signage, heavy skies and corrugated surfaces all benefit from it. Paper prints, properly framed, give a crisper edge and can feel more considered in a dining room, study or gallery wall.

If you have a smaller print that you love, do not apologise for it by hanging it too high or isolating it on an enormous wall. Put it in a tighter setting: above a small table, beside a bookcase, in a reading corner or as part of a considered group. Scale is about the relationship between picture, wall and furniture, not simply the size written on the print listing.

Let the colours join the room, not match it

You do not need to match every colour in a landscape print to a cushion or curtain. In fact, that can make a room look over-planned. Instead, look for one colour that speaks to something already present: the warm brown of a wooden table, a deep green chair, a faded blue rug or the soft grey of painted walls.

Landscapes with mossy greens, earth colours and grey skies are flexible because they sit easily with natural materials. Prints with richer orange, red or yellow details can provide a welcome jolt in rooms that are otherwise quiet. Industrial subjects often bring their own useful palette - oxidised reds, dull silvers, tar blacks and weathered creams. They add texture visually, even on a smooth wall.

Black and white work deserves a mention here too. A monochrome drawing or photograph can make a colourful room feel less busy, while adding structure to a pale room. It is often the right choice when you like the subject of a landscape but do not want another large block of colour competing with the rest of the space.

Mix rural and urban subjects with a bit of confidence

A house does not need to stick to one geographical mood. A Gloucestershire field can sit perfectly well with a photograph of a Los Angeles sign, provided the images share some visual connection. It might be strong line, a limited palette, a similar frame colour or simply the fact that both have a clear point of view.

The more useful question is whether the pictures look as though somebody chose them. A rural scene, an old shed and a large American advertising sign may sound like an unlikely trio, but each can be about shape, surface and the pleasure of looking at overlooked things. That is a far better basis for a wall than trying to make everything politely coordinate.

When creating a group, lay the prints on the floor first. Leave enough breathing room between frames, and vary the images without making the arrangement fussy. One larger landscape with two smaller supporting pieces is often enough. If every print is shouting, none of them is.

Give the print a proper place

Hang landscape prints at a sensible viewing height, generally with the centre around eye level. Above furniture, bring them closer than you may initially think. A big gap between the top of a sofa and the bottom of a print makes the picture feel disconnected from the room.

Lighting matters as well. Avoid direct, harsh sunlight where possible, especially for paper prints. A nearby lamp, soft ceiling light or the changing daylight from a window can bring out different qualities in a print during the day. The changing weather is part of the appeal of landscape work, after all.

There are new works on the way, including a collection of my own images of sheds, as well as forthcoming work by Steve Parker. For now, trust the subjects that keep catching your eye. A print of a modest building, a riverbank or a huge painted sign can be the thing that gives a room its memory - and that is usually the best reason to put it on the wall.