Most wall art is hung too high, too small, or with too much around it. In a Japandi room those three mistakes show more than anywhere, because the wall is so quiet. The good news is that the fixes are simple, and you only need a tape measure and a pencil.
I'm Ryushi Nagata, and I run the MA walls from Tokyo. We don't have a TV in our living room, and the day we put art on that wall instead, the whole room changed. A piece we make, Moss and Time, hangs in our bedroom. This guide is what I've learned about hanging pieces like these: how high, how big, how far apart, and the Japanese habit behind all of it.
Height: centre of the art about 57 to 60 in (145 to 152 cm) from the floor
Above a sofa or bed: bottom edge about 8 to 10 in (20 to 25 cm) above the back or headboard
Width: a pair of pieces about two-thirds the width of the furniture below. A single piece can be narrower
Between pieces: 2 to 3 in (5 to 8 cm)
The Japanese rule: one piece per wall, with real empty space around it
How high to hang wall art
Hang it so the centre of the picture sits at about 57 to 60 inches (145 to 152 cm) from the floor. That is roughly eye level for an adult standing up, and it is the height most galleries use.
A quick way to find the nail position:
1. Mark 57 in (145 cm) on the wall.
2. Add half the height of the frame.
3. Subtract the distance from the top of the frame down to the wire or hanger when it is pulled tight.
That point is where the nail goes.
Japandi rooms tend to have low furniture, so if most of your sitting happens close to the floor, you can bring everything down a few inches. What matters is that the art feels connected to the furniture, not floating near the ceiling.
Hanging art above a sofa or a bed
Over furniture, forget the 57-inch rule and work from the furniture instead. Leave about 8 to 10 inches (20 to 25 cm) between the top of the sofa back or headboard and the bottom of the frame. Any more than that and the two stop looking like they belong together.
All of our pieces are portrait, so how wide you go depends on whether you hang one or two. A pair side by side can cover about two-thirds of the furniture. On a three-seat sofa about 84 inches (213 cm) wide, two 24×36 in pieces do that.
A single portrait piece will be narrower than that, and that is fine. Centre it on the furniture and leave the wall on either side empty. If the wall starts to feel bare, that is the time to add a second piece. Either way, centre the art on the furniture, not on the wall.
What size wall art do you need?
Our prints come in four sizes. Here they are side by side at the same scale, above a sofa about 84 inches (213 cm) wide. The frame adds a little to each size.
This is how I would match them to a wall.
| Where it hangs | Size to start with | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Above a three-seat sofa | Two 24×36 in side by side, or one 24×36 in | A pair covers about two-thirds of the width. One piece leaves more empty wall |
| Above a queen or king bed | Two 18×24 in side by side, or one 24×36 in | Two 18×24 in cover about two-thirds of a queen bed |
| Above a console, desk or dresser | 18×24 in | Big enough to anchor the furniture, small enough to leave space |
| Hallway, beside a door, narrow walls | 12×16 in or 16×20 in | A small piece in a narrow space feels deliberate |
| Bathroom, reading corner, shelf wall | 12×16 in | Seen up close, so it doesn't need to be big |
If you're between two sizes, choose the larger one. In a calm room, a single piece that is slightly too big reads as a decision. One that is slightly too small reads as an afterthought.
See it on your wall before you order
Before you order, you can check the size on screen. Our product pages have two tools for this, under Help me choose just below the size options.
Compare sizes
Tap Compare sizes. It shows every size of that piece side by side above a bed, drawn to the same scale. You can switch between poster, framed poster and canvas, try the three frame colours, change the wall colour to match your room, and pick a twin, full, queen or king bed. Measurements show in inches or centimetres.
View on your wall with AR
On poster and framed print pages, tap View on your wall with AR. Your phone's camera places the piece on your own wall at its real size. Stand about 1 to 2 metres (3 to 6 ft) from the wall and move the phone slowly across it so it can find the surface.
On iPhone, you can switch sizes and frames from the controls at the bottom of the AR view. On Android, choose the size and frame on the product page, then open AR again. On a computer, the button shows a QR code to scan with your phone. Canvas prints don't have AR yet. On canvas pages, the size comparison is the Compare size & style button under the size options.
One piece or several?
In a traditional Japanese room there is an alcove called the tokonoma. It holds one hanging scroll and perhaps one flower arrangement, and that's all. The scroll is changed with the seasons rather than added to. The idea is that you can only really look at one thing at a time.
That is the habit I'd bring into a Japandi room: one piece per wall, with real empty space around it. We call that space ma (間). It is not a gap waiting to be filled. It is what lets the picture be seen. You can read more about it in What Is Ma?
If you do hang two or three, treat the group as one picture.
Keep them the same size and the same frame colour, and hang them in a straight line with 2 to 3 inches (5 to 8 cm) between them. Their combined width and centre follow the same rules as a single piece.
A wall with one picture and a lot of space says more than a wall that is full.
The same wall three ways, above a sideboard about 72 in (183 cm) wide. Sizes are to scale.
Choosing a frame for a Japandi room
Our framed prints come in three colours. The easiest way to choose is to look around the room and pick the colour that is already there. A frame that repeats one thing in the room looks like it belongs. A frame that matches nothing looks like it arrived later.
Red Oak is the most Japandi of the three. Choose it if the room has light or mid-toned wood: a floor, a bed frame, a low table. It doesn't have to be the same wood, only close in tone. It warms up ink and grey pieces, and it sits well with earthy ones like Moss and Time.
Black gives a sharper, more graphic edge. Choose it if the room already has one or two black things in it, such as a lamp, a chair leg, a window frame or an iron kettle. It suits ink pieces like Mist Valley or One Stroke. On a pale wall it draws the clearest line around the picture, so it is the one to pick if you can't decide.
White almost disappears on a white or off-white wall. Choose it when you want the picture to feel like part of the wall rather than something on it. It works best in a bright room with other white surfaces, such as shoji, linen or plaster, and daylight on the wall. In a dim room a white frame can turn grey.
If you hang two pieces together, use the same frame colour for both.
If you'd rather not use a frame at all, a canvas has a finished edge and hangs as it is.
Light, and where not to hang it
Avoid strong direct sunlight. Paper and ink can fade over time in direct sun. A wall that gets soft or indirect light is better for the print, and it usually looks better too.
Use warm light at night. A lamp to one side, rather than a spotlight from above, gives ink and paper tones a gentle glow. This is where Japandi art looks its best.
Keep it away from steam and heat. Above a radiator, next to a shower or over a cooktop is hard on any paper print.
Before you put a nail in the wall
Cut a piece of paper or cardboard to the size of the frame and tape it to the wall. Leave it there for a day. Walk past it, sit on the sofa, lie in bed. You will know very quickly whether the height and size feel right, and it costs nothing to move a piece of tape.
Our framed prints arrive with hanging hardware, and our canvases come with mounting brackets. For a heavier frame or a plaster wall, use a proper picture hook rather than a single nail.
For the ideas behind a calm Japandi wall, read What Is Japandi? and What Is Ma?
Photographs in this article are illustrative images created for the MA walls.
Frequently asked questions
How high should wall art be hung?
Hang it so the centre of the picture is about 57 to 60 inches (145 to 152 cm) from the floor. Over a sofa or bed, leave about 8 to 10 inches (20 to 25 cm) between the furniture and the bottom of the frame instead.
What size art should go above a sofa?
A pair of portrait pieces side by side should cover about two-thirds of the sofa. On a three-seat sofa about 84 in (213 cm) wide, that means two 24×36 in pieces. A single 24×36 in piece covers less of the width, which works if you want more empty wall around it.
How far apart should two pictures be?
Leave 2 to 3 inches (5 to 8 cm) between them, and treat the pair as one piece when you work out the height and centre.
What kind of wall art suits a Japandi room?
Art with a narrow palette and open space inside the picture, such as ink landscapes, simple natural forms, or soft light and shadow. One larger piece with empty wall around it usually works better than many small ones.
Which frame colour works best for Japandi?
Pick the colour that is already in the room. Natural wood, such as red oak, is the most typical choice because it echoes wooden furniture and floors. Black suits ink pieces and rooms with a few dark accents, and it is the safe choice if you can't decide. White blends into pale walls and works best in a bright room.