Living Room Wall Art

My recent post about our Living Room Makeover has spurred me on to find the finishing touches for the room. We need some new ceiling lights and some kind of centrepiece on our currently empty wall above our sofa.
I think a room isn't completely finished until you have some art on the walls, a few pictures really personalise a house and make it look like a home.
We put up a mirror over the fireplace to add some reflected light into the room and we hung a cool Jazz Festival print up on the wall that we'd bought on our honeymoon in St Lucia. All the other prints that we'd brought with us from our previous house didn't look right in the room and so we had planned to buy a large piece of artwork to fill our one remaining blank wall but we've never found 'the one'.

It's really hard choosing something suitable, my husband and I are both designers so we both have our own creative tastes. We don't just want a generic canvas print from a high street store, we want something special that has the wow factor. It also has to be something that goes with the room and that me and my husband both love, this is why the wall is still empty! 

With the bare wall staring blankly at us for nearly a year, I've decided to step up the search for that final special piece that will complete the room and really make the living room complete.
Here are some of my favourites, I love all these for different reasons and wish I had more walls to fill (and more money) so I could have them all!

1. Spice (see main image above)

I recently discovered the artist Caroline Ashwood and she's fast becoming my new favourite artist. I could quite happily hang one of her paintings in every room in the house but I've narrowed it down to two for this blog post! The first one is 'Spice', a bright abstract with metallic highlights which is really vibrant and full of texture. The beautiful colours mean this will definitely be a strong centre piece in any room that it is hung in.

2. Rockpool

Rockpool is my other choice by Caroline Ashwood. As with all Caroline's work, I love the texture of the paint on the canvas and this piece also has fantastic colours and tones. I really like the fact that you can see reflections and the shapes of the rockpool even thought it is an abstract piece.

3. Thoughts of May

Sandy Dooley is another artist that I have come across recently and I love her beautiful landscapes and the details and texture of her work. Many of her paintings are of colourful flowers and meadows and are very atmospheric, you can almost smell the spring air in 'Thoughts of May' which is one of my favourites.

4. Chance Canvas

I love the rich colours of this contemporary abstract print by Parris Wakefield Additions (£90). My husband and I both like abstract art but have only ever bought one print by an abstract artist (a César Manrique from a holiday in Lanzarote). Maybe we should consider something like this, it would certainly add some colour to our neutral decor.

5. Coast

This print by Lisa James is another piece I was drawn to when I saw her work featured on the GAS website. I really like the style of her work and the simplicity of the shapes, there are a few pieces I like of Lisa's which might work as a set of three on our wall. This might be a good solution to fill the large space rather than buying one large piece or artwork.

6. Interior

This is by another artist I found on the GAS Gallery website, Red Girling. I like her architectural style and the colours in this piece would really compliment our living rooms neutral tones. I love the textures and layers of her work and this is a one off original artwork so it would be a completely unique piece to hang on your wall. It is above our budget at £1950 but then that's the price you pay for a stunning piece of original art!

7. GUILT Mirror

Ok so this mirror by KOKET isn't technically art but personally I think it's a pice of art in it's own right! The sculptured shape and the textures on the metal are stunning and it's definitely a statement piece. This mirror would look fantastic in our living room but again we'll have to start saving up as it is £2110. It would certainly be a luxurious touch to our contemporary room.

8. Moti Ari Wall Hanging

An original wall hanging like this is another alternative to a traditional wall decoration. These fair trade wall hangings are recycled from wedding saris so each one is completely unique in colour, decoration and embellishment. I think this would look beautiful in our living room and I love the fact that each piece will have a story to tell from whichever bride has adorned it's fabric. They are available on the Myakka website along with lots or other lovely fair trade pieces.

So that's my final eight. I don't know which one is 'the one' though, which one is your favourite?