It's no secret that artwork brings color, pattern, texture and life into a space, but those with dramatic modern-style tastes have a secret weapon they use powerfully: adding a dramatic modern piece of art to a space can increase its wow factor by a ton!
Being large certainly helps. Having a modern subject is wonderful. Bold colors and bright patterns definitely does it. What all dramatic modern art pieces have in common is they bring the drama. They make a huge impact in whatever space they're in and hopefully balance and enhance the rest of a room. Here are some stunning examples of dramatic modern art pieces we've spotted in recent Apartment Therapy house tours.
TOP ROW:
1) In your face bold fruit in Mark's "Retro Cabin Mod" in Eagle Rock
2) Graphic and gray in Dina's Vibrant and Eclectic Home
3) White backgrounds and energetic hues in Ami and Sean's Colorful, Welcoming & Art-Filled Home
4) Modern on wood in Erin's Warm & Wood-Wrapped Austin Bungalow
5) Graffiti graphic in Alexis' Modern Glass House
BOTTOM ROW:
6) A powerful pair in Traci's Incredible South Pasadena Craftsman
7) Natural and global in Budi & Andrew's Global Oasis in London
8) Striped and sassy in Cristina Thrives as an Expat in Hong Kong
9) Office space bold in Kevin's Cool, Collected Studio Cocktail
10) Bold over bedding in Elizabeth's Colorful and Adventurous House
(Images: Marcia Prentice, Adrienne Breaux, Bethany Nauert, Eleanor Büsing, Jill Slater, Patrick J. Hamilton)
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Even though I love art, and am an amateur artist myself, I've been holding back on buying any until I can afford something of a proper size. Most of what I do have is leftover from college and is no bigger than 16x20, and too small art is something that bothers me in a room. So I'll save up until I can get my big bang of a canvas that will take up 50% of a wall!
I love to see big bold art in a home. It's fantastic that many people now are embracing interesting art with more personality, beyond the old standby of photo portraits and bland landscapes.
I got a few inexpensive Rothko prints that seem to do the job until I can find some great original pieces.
If you have a minimalist space and can't afford big art, but a big canvas and paint it the color that you want. Then put a little dot of a complementary color off center. Done! Make sure you sign my name.
In the 8th image, is that a TV pushing that painting out of the shot?
even buying a large canvas can be very expensive. i'd be interested to read tips for creating large scale art without buying pre-stretched canvasses??
AMEN!!!
@SGY - How expensive is expensive? I have a 6-foot pre-stretched canvas I purchased at Michaels on sale, for about $25.
If you want large art but can't spend the money on pre-stretched canvas, you can frame fabric. Large prints can be cheap, depending on how you get them printed (and if you can; copyright laws apply).
As an artist, I definitely agree that big, bold art is a very good thing!
Olivia Harsham Art
Find a big piece of fabric and frame it - it's the cheapest easiest art. For example, there's a Thomas Paul shower curtain with an octopus on it that would make a great piece of art.-
http://www.designpublic.com/thomas-paul-shower-curtain-octopus
Re: DIY art,,,,I bought a 4x4' piece of 1/4" plywood (basically half a sheet) at Home Depot, primed it, and painted it with my own design, I can't remember the cost, but I know it was CHEAP, because I wouldn't have spent much on a project like that. Probably under $20, I hung it on the wall with mirror clips.
There are thousands of images on www.greatbigcanvas.com. They are available in many sizes and formats. I bought a 6' wide panorama of nature photograph for a vacation rental that is stunning, It looks like a Thomas Mangelsen (Images of Nature photographer) but only about 15% of the cost of one of his works). If you plan to buy, look for a promo code and hold out until you find one for at least 25% off. I've seen them as high as 30% off.
I found this site recently, Pixel Prints www.pixel-prints.com Looks as though they are a new company. But I must say, they have some really cool modern art!
THAT IS ONE OF THEY MOST AWSOMEST HOUSES I HAVE AND WILL EVER SEE . ALL MY COMPLIMENTS TO THE OWNER AND/OR DECOR DESINER
Hey Adrienne, I have landed in this blog while traveling via blog land. I have a interior designer by profession. I love to see canvas wall art in a home. Its really fantastic that many people are using these wall arts in their room to decorate their home place. Thanks for sharing such a nice article. I have bookmarked and twitted with my followers. :)