This Affordable Art Trend is Becoming a New Classic
Have you noticed botanicals are back again? Maybe it has something to do with what crazy plant ladies and gents we’ve become these days. But to be fair, botanicals never really went away. It has to be due to their versatility and general inoffensiveness. Most people, even those of us critical of mass produced art, appreciate the graphic impact these pieces make, even when they’re not the real deal. Vintage bookplates or pressed botanicals are obviously ideal, but there are tons of great reproductions on the market, big and small, cheap and pricey. And better yet, botanical prints kind of kill it wherever you put them. Need proof?
Designer Lauren Liess seems to gravitate toward natural elements in her rooms, so she’s been known to use a botanical or two for artwork. This duo hung over her sofa a few houses back, and I think it works for a couple of reasons. You fill up a large amount of wall space with only two pieces, and the black background feels bolder and more modern than some of the smaller, daintier botanicals. These guys can stand on their own, but I also get the sense that they’re simple enough to anchor a gallery wall, too, if you wanted to try that.
Botanicals don’t always have to be big and bold though. In fact, it’s often easier to find smaller botanicals and copies of old botanicals in books at flea markets. That’s where the homeowner found the little framed florals used in this bedroom by Studio Mcgee.
Okay, this bathroom just about stopped me in my tracks. I’m in love with the botanical wallpaper designer Katie Leede of KLC Studios used in her own home. And yes, there are animals in there, too, but the look and feel is the same as if it were all vintage botanical charts. Yes, you could buy this paper, and I’m fairly certain it’s wildly expensive. But imagine how cool it would be to try something like this on the cheap if you bought an old book of botanical prints you could cut out? In a small room, it would be totally worth the time and effort, I think.
Kitchen art is tricky, but again, the big botanical chart appears to be working in this kitchen by Ryland Peters & Small. The surrounding plants probably help the cause a bit.
These big prints also work in much smaller rooms, like this petite but charming kitchen seen on Small Space Design Ideas via Stadshem.
I also like this artfully messy workspace slash random room from Elle Decoration Sweden. This kind of chart with several sketches on it seems like a more obscure botanical style piece. You know, something your neighbors won’t have.
And finally, a gallery wall with a couple different kinds of botanicals incorporated into it. Really, botanicals, whether super science-y and in chart form or more romantic and dainty, are hard to mess up in an interior. Somehow they just work, singular or grouped, tiny or huge. This grouping in particular is from Geraldine James’ book “Creative Walls” via Laura Ashley.
Whether you’re at a loss for artwork to try for your home, or are infallibly in love with all things plant related, check out some of our favorite botanical prints:
