Art Exhibitions - 4 Way to Create a Cohesive Exhibition

When a visitor walks into your art exhibition their first impression counts. If it doesn't look professional they may not take the artwork seriously, or even worse, they may not stop to look around.

There is enormous benefit in making an art exhibition look professional. Visitors will perceive value in the artworks, they will be able to view the exhibition without being distracted, they will have a lasting impression of the event, and they might be impressed enough to recommend the exhibition to others.

One way to make your art exhibition look professional is to create cohesion. A cohesive exhibition is done by unifying or linking the artworks in some way by using a common element. If your audience cannot see a logical connection then the exhibition may appear random and confused. As a result, they may not linger long enough to take in the whole essence of the exhibition.

Four easy ways you can create an exciting, cohesive art exhibition is by selecting an exhibition theme or title, adopting only one artistic style or genre, using only one art medium, &/or limiting the color palette. These ideas can be mixed-and-matched together to create an even more dynamic exhibition.

1. Select an exhibition theme and/or title.

The simplest way to give your art exhibition cohesion is by selecting a theme or title. For example, you may decide to have an exhibition theme on industrial landscapes, child portraits, or Greek architecture. Each artwork in the exhibition will be an interpretation of this theme and as such a unity will exist between them.

Selecting a specific exhibition title will have a similar result. For instance, having a title such as "Urban Myths", "Creating Illusions" or perhaps "Say Cheese!" will make selecting appropriate artworks easy, thus creating cohesion.

2. Display only one artwork style or genre.

Unifying your art exhibition by adopting only one style or genre is a sure fire way to create a link between the artworks. For instance, you may decide to have an exhibition of only impressionism works, or cubist paintings or perhaps surrealism. By having each artwork limited to a specific style or genre the audience will easily see a logical connection between them no matter how limited their art knowledge is.

3. Display only one main art medium.

Displaying only one main art medium at your exhibition will give consistency to the event. Having multiple mediums can leave your audience overwhelmed and confused if their senses are over stimulated. For instance, you may decide to display only watercolor paintings, chalk pastel paintings, or ceramic sculptures. By limiting your choice of medium each artwork will have a seamless flow into each other as your visitors walk around the exhibition.

4. Limit the colour palette of the exhibition.

This is not a very common technique, however if done correctly it can create a dynamic and exciting exhibition. A limited color palette is pleasing to the eye and your audience will feel at ease. Often a limited color combination will happen naturally when you select a common theme or topic for your exhibition. For instance, an art exhibition on mountainous landscapes might show predominately browns and blues.

As you can see it is relatively simple to create a cohesive art exhibition by adopting common elements which all artworks will contain. As a result your cohesive exhibition will look professional, add perceived value to the artworks, allow your audience to view the exhibition without distraction, and leave them with a positive lasting impression.