As a rule of thumb, art above a sofa should be roughly two-thirds to three-quarters of the sofa's width, hung so the bottom edge sits a hand's width or two above the backrest. A single wide piece reads as calmer and more deliberate than several small ones, and anchors the whole seating area.
Measure the sofa, not the wall. A common rule of thumb is to aim for about 60 to 75 per cent of the sofa's width, which keeps the art and the furniture feeling like one group. Go much narrower and the piece can look lost; go wider than the sofa and it tends to crowd the room.
Our pieces are 150 × 100cm, which suits a typical three-seater or a larger two-and-a-half seater sofa. If your sofa is a compact two-seater, a piece this size will sit wider than the rule of thumb suggests, so check the proportions on the wall before you commit. For a broader look at scale, see our guide to sizing statement wall art.
Another rule of thumb: leave roughly 15 to 25cm between the top of the sofa and the bottom of the frame. Closer than that and the art feels attached to the furniture; further and the two stop relating to each other. Then check the centre of the piece against eye level for someone standing, and adjust to suit the ceiling height.
Wall height matters as much as sofa width. In a room with a generous ceiling, a landscape piece lets you fill the wall horizontally without pushing the art up out of the seating zone.
Sofas are horizontal, so a horizontal piece usually echoes the line of the furniture. Horizon Gold is shown horizontally, in blue, neutral and gold, and it is a natural fit above a sofa in a calm, layered room.
Vertical designs can still work, particularly where the sofa sits between windows or against a narrow wall, or where you want to draw the eye upward. Tidewater, in blue, navy and gold, and Starry Night, with gold-leaf detail through charcoal and white, are shown vertically. Any design can be hung either way, and hung above a sofa, a vertical piece makes a stronger statement and suits a more architectural look. Our post on how to choose statement wall art covers format in more detail.
Think about the sofa's colour first. A neutral sofa gives you the most freedom:
Pull one colour from the art into a cushion or throw, and leave the rest of the room restrained.
Both are available in every design. The canvas print is colour-matched to the original design, while the oil painting is hand-applied, so its texture and tone can differ slightly from photographs. Over a sofa, where the piece is viewed from across the room, either works; the oil painting adds surface depth in side light. We compare them properly in canvas print vs oil painting.
Pieces are made to order, with a lead time of 12–16 weeks from deposit, so it helps to settle the sofa and wall first. If you are a designer, stylist or retailer, the trade page explains how ordering works.
If you would like to see a piece against your own palette, every design is currently in Sydney and can be viewed in person by appointment. Get in touch and we will arrange a time.
Aim for about two-thirds to three-quarters of the sofa's width as a rule of thumb. A single large piece usually looks more settled than several small ones.
A rule of thumb is to leave about 15 to 25cm between the top of the sofa and the bottom of the frame. This keeps the art connected to the furniture while leaving room to breathe.
A horizontal piece such as Horizon Gold echoes the line of the sofa, while a vertical piece such as Tidewater or Starry Night creates a more dramatic, upward-drawing look. Choose based on the width of the wall and the height of the ceiling.