This Gallery Easel Is My New Favorite Way to Display Art

By
Sarah Lyon
Sarah Lyon
Sarah Lyon

Sarah Lyon is a freelance writer living in New York City. She has written for MyDomaine since 2020 and contributes home, lifestyle, and wellness content for a number of other publications, including Apartment Therapy and Architectural Digest.

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Published on Jul 07, 2022

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Small photo easel with women art displayed.

Photo: Sarah Lyon; Graphic: MyDomaine

I get so much of my home décor inspiration from scrolling through Instagram and Pinterest, and recently, I've discovered that easels are making a major comeback. No, I'm not talking about actual artists' easels or the ones designed for kids. What I've been noticing are easels that are built to hold smaller pieces of artwork atop a desk, console table, or mantel.

Note: I'm a major art fanatic. I am always on the hunt for new prints and affordable originals that speak to me. But living in a small apartment, my wall space is fairly limited. I like the idea of leaning art for a more casual look, but I'm always worried about smaller pieces getting knocked over or just looking a little out of place. When I became aware of the easel trend, I was even more excited—finally, some of my 8 by 10" framed pieces would look a bit more stately and chic.

I decided to purchase this gallery easel from Ballard Designs, and am so glad I did. While it's a bit pricy for a decorative item, I am not opposed to splurging a bit on a statement accent piece that is both sophisticated looking and functional.

Ballard Designs Gallery Easel

easel

Ballard Designs
View On Ballard Designs

Ballard frequently offers 20% off sales, too, so keep your eye out for a deal if you're not in a hurry.

As a serial redecorator, I have already tried the easel in a couple of places (and with a couple of different art pieces). I first placed it on my nightstand and loved the layered look. The brass hue perfectly complemented the picture frame I used and really made my black and white figure drawing pop, too.

easel

Design: Sarah Lyon, Photo: Allie Provost

When I thrifted a beautiful wooden secretary desk, I knew the easel would complement this piece wonderfully. After all, why not fuse old and new? I'm a firm believer that antique pieces can look lovely jazzed up with more contemporary-looking accents and colors, and I couldn't be more pleased with how well the brass stand blends in here.

easel

Sarah Lyon

I've posted lots of pictures of the easel online and have received so many compliments on its beautiful shape. I appreciate that it's easily adjustable to house the picture frame of your choosing and is quite secure—the knobs in the back can be tightened very firmly to ensure your art piece stays safe and doesn't get knocked over. also love that it adds height to any vignette. Tall pieces like this one draw the eye upward and create plenty of visual interest.

The easel I purchased comes in a larger size, too. While I think the scale may be a bit too large for my petite NYC apartment, I would love to scoop it up someday and give one of my bigger art pieces the grand treatment.

How to Elevate Your Home With Art That Will Never Go Out of Style