Curating a gallery wall is an art. The right sizing, spacing, and framing can make that mismatched collection of museum prints and family photos look like a modern masterpiece. But frames are no longer the only consideration to make when choosing how to display your favorite works. These days, the mat is the star of the show, having taken social media by storm in the last six months—from a triptych of photobooth strips to a selection of film slides against a moss green backdrop.
“Even something as subtle as an off-center opening can make a viewer pause and interact with the art differently,” Michelle Adams, editor of The Artful Review at Artfully Walls. “Matting offers a way to add depth, context, and even storytelling to a piece, turning a simple print or photo into a layered visual experience.”
Whether striped or colored, weighted or centered, there are so many directions you can go with your photo mats to make your keepsakes feel like museum-worthy displays (without shelling out hundreds for a custom framing consultation). “[Mats] separate the piece from the frame, so your eye has a place to rest, and they contribute to the design of the frame overall, giving you more real estate to show off colors and textures you want to spotlight,” says Tessa Wolf, the head of merchandising for Framebridge. She notes that they can be any size, shape, or orientation to give a tiny piece more prominence or “shape” it to fit in a specific space in your home. Below, a few nontraditional mat boards that can help you rethink your tired gallery arrangements, plus some tips on how to play with colors, patterns, and proportions.
A minimalist take on quite a maximal trend, solid-hued photo mats can help make the colors of your prints pop. This one allows for added personalization if you’d like to memorialize a special place, date, or even a person’s name.
.jpeg)
Magpie Frames Geo Fabric-Wrapped Frame & Mat
Go all in with a…