The Modern DIY Art Shelf

July 28, 2011 · Posted in Interior design trends

While checking email and catching up on the blogs I follow I found this great post on HGTV’s blog on How to Build A Modern Art Shelf. I love DIY projects, and this one looked especially easy. When I scrolled down to the final picture below, however, something just seemed off to me.

So I posed a question to the design team here at Vastu: “Is this shelf too high to really display art? Or is the height appropriate for the kinds of pieces the blogger chose to put up?”

Here’s what they had to say…

Sarita Peresada:

“I like the look, but I do think that it is too high for artwork. You can’t get close to enough to really see anything, well…unless you’re 7 ft. tall. I would lower it a minimum of 12”. I think it would be appropriate at that height for glass or ceramic objects that you can appreciate from a distance, not all of those small art pieces.”

Vastu Co-Owner, Jason Claire:

“I love the idea for a collection of items because at that height, it reads as one unit where it isn’t so important to see the detail of each item. For original art, I believe that anchoring the shelf at eye level is more effective. It gives the art room to breathe and allows those who appreciate the art the ability to get up close and see it.”

Ray Nguyen:

“It’s good for the type of thing she is doing. All those pieces kind of “casually” arranged up there create an single long strip of art. The pieces overlap each other. They invite you to look closer and pull down things that catch your eye.

It’s not so good for really displaying individual pieces. The shelf is too high up and out of proper viewing height.

Still cute and fun! Though not terribly stable for heavy things. I would screw a strip of wood underneath and into the wall (painted the same as wall or shelf color , countersink screws, filled and painted) if I were going to mix in heavier objects up there like ceramics or sculpture.”

Vastu Co-Owner, Eric Kole:

“I think it’s too high if you want to really see and appreciate the things on the shelf. But it looks good as a photograph, or a design concept, despite the lack of usefulness in actually viewing the display. From a usage standpoint, it does free up space, however, and you don’t bump into it.”

So while the shelf turned out great and looks fantastic with the pieces Erin decided to display, the height wouldn’t be appropriate for all types of art. So when building or mounting a shelf, think about the kinds of things it will hold and what kind of interactions you want your guests to have with them.

Sidenote: Anybody catch that great looking Eames Aluminum Executive Chair..?