apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

This is a great space to do some kind of large mobile to take your eyes away from the boxiness of the walls. It would look great from the landing too Then still maybe paint the wall looking back into the sitting room a different vibrant color just to break things up??

Dear Les,

I would consider placing there some ethnic art pieces. An intricate rug from Africa, or a carved wood branch from Southeast Asia. Or perhaps something Native American?

You need something that can be studied if looked at, while at the same time allowing for a quick viewing as well.

i LOVE the idea of the mobile. you could also do a series of display blocks on the wall. a 3-D box with an interesting series of sculptures, vases, masks, etc. the boxes themselves would add interest and dimension.

Hi Les. I was going to suggest something similar to Just Me.
I can't quite tell from the top photo but it looks as though there is a light fixture (or is it the corner of a ceiling fan?) in the ceiling high above the dining table. If so, I think a real "Wow" light fixture might be fun. Something like an antique (or antique inspired) Spanish Mission-style chandelier would complement the wrought iron pieces in the adjacent living room. Then the light would serve as a focal point instead of the bare walls.

A trapeze.

my parents have a double height living area in their condo. They hung a japanese kimono on a hanger. A giant pop of bold color for a decent price!http://www.cherryblossomgardens.com/images/kimono_red_geisha.jpg

The front end of an old buick.

vintage school charts. the huge ones. or vintage posters, again, the huge ones...hey, what about a crazy assemblage of infinity mirrors?

I vote for a mobile!

A banner or two from Better Wall.
http://www.betterwall.com/

I think multiple flat screen televisions. Kinda like a sports bar but with the coziness of home.

A sari. Beautiful and many yards long.

I second Erin T's comment. A gorgeous hanging light fixture that is also huge and arty. Doesn't have to be antique or Arts and Crafts.

I also like the Kimono idea.

Basically I think you need to think outside the picture box here and hang something three dimensional and non-traditional (don't hang a picture or even a painting).

A chandelier!!!!

What direction are your windows facing?

I'd suggest large-scale art (sculpture, textile, rugs) but if the wall is getting a lot of direct sunlight, any piece you mount there will fade.

Looking at your decorative style in the house - maybe a large ornate wrought-iron gate that's all antique and rusty?

A long groovy chandelir, or cool light fixture.

A long groovy chandelir, or cool light fixture

hi, i don't want to impose my own tastes onto your home, but you walls are glorious huge canvases! i think a graphic mural would be great on one wall and a complementary color covering the other. the idea of a mural can be a scary thing, but i'm thinking a simple, bold one for your wall.

now i don't mean pink, and i don't mean a lady, but here is the style that i'm seeing:
http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=46431.0

Whatever you put up there...make sure you can access it for cleaning.

plants- hanging plants would look wonderful; it looks like at least one of the walls gets good light.

you may have to be creative for watering (a rigid long hose ? a drip system- sort of like an aqueduct for the plants?)

but it would be beautiful.

I think it needs a mural. Otherwise, maybe one of those huge French movie posters.

Nothing on the walls -- except for perhaps some vibrant color. But the most interesting hanging light/chandelier you can afford. You want to bring things down -- not make people look up!

Some sort of big sculpture with incorporated lighting. In emulation of that fabulous $28,000 lighting fixture from a few weeks ago, how about finding a large interestingly shaped tree branch and work some LED lights into it?

If you can't do that, I recommend a hanging cage with a go-go dancer.

go-go dancer! You could probably do some sort of video setup showing interesting things like music videos.

I saw the most beautiful wall the other day similar to yours at stationary store in the Heights (Houston). The wall was decorated in a mural created by hundreds of origami butterflies..it was breathtaking!

Hey, Johnny. If you're still around, would you mind sharing the name of the Heights stationary store? I've gotta see the butterfly mural for myself. Thanks.

>>The front end of an old buick.

Gets my vote! :)

Or if you still can't decide, buy a small projector and you can display anything you want onto the wall opposite the projector...

- classical artwork
- Modern
- old Buick
- go-go dancers...

you get the idea.
(Plus you can watch movies on it)

That mobile idea or some sort of haning art in the dinning area seems like a good choice and adds a point of interest during meal time... I'm a fan of glass art (or any other visual art piecnes - canvas, large graphics) especially in some sort of grouping to make a gallery type setting.

How about one of the L O N G Akari By Isamu Noguchi pendant fixtures? Not too expensive and the space would be filled with sculpture AND light! You might also try multiple George Nelson bubble lamps hung at different heights. Modernica makes the lamps but I am not sure if they are making the three lamp "chandelier" as it was originally produced by Howard Miller. Good luck!

You might consider a very large, stretched canvas covered with a large scale graphic print. I love Marimekko prints. Your walls are obviously large enough to handle it. The beauty of a stretched canvas is that when you tire of the print, you just change it out for something different. You can also make your own stretched canvas to the exact measurements of your wall.

Les- can I ask if you painted your walls yourselves, or did you have them done? I also have some 20 ft. walls to deal with and would like to keep the painting costs down if at all possible, but unsure of how difficult it would be to do ourselves.

I also vote for a Chandelier :)

here's another vote for the wall of LCDs.

Or, you could take a stroll and see what the other hundred househoulds in your development are doing with that wall.

Hi MrsH,

Sorry for the delay with the answer regarding painting high walls. You must set up scaffolding (you can rent it fairly cheap)to paint the walls. Trying to do it on ladders is dangerous and hard to cut-in (where the wall meets the ceiling)
Les

Why not put up something that runs the for most of the height of the wall, instead of just at the top, giving the room a dramatic focus?

As a textile collector with 11 foot ceilings, I've dealt with issues of scale for a long time. Some things that might work with on your wall are painted Japanese banners http://www.saberdesigns.cc/banners.htm, authentic kilim rugs, which, unlke commercial ones are long and narrow, e.g., 4 X 10 up to 5 X 15 or commerical ikats weavings with oversized figures from the island of Sumba in Indonesia. If you hunt around, you can find these on eBay or elsewhere on-line. Whatever you get, make sure that the size of the design is large enough. If you hang a kilim, read up on line about how to use Velcro to support it. For lighter textiles, I use map tacks (don't ask) or even push pins that match the fabric - from 20 feet away, you'll never see them. For the high wall that exists only at the top, there are any number of textiles you can get - look at Central Asian suzanis on eBay - you'll have to go through any number of awful boring ones but there are fabulous ones to be had - and not at all expensive. They are sold by dealers over there.

If light through the window is an issue, you can apply an inexpensive clear film that screens out a significant amount of UV light, which will reduce fading of whatever you hand - it is inexpensive and doesn't use adhesive - assuming you can find a way to reach the windows to work on them.