We never used a formula to determine the wallspace needed for any of the 2-dimensional exhibits I worked on. It took a question from Christine End (John Michael Kohler Arts Center), posted on Museum-L, to even imagine such a thing. But that query got me thinking… and here’s what I came up with.
A formula for the total linear wall space (TLS) needed to hang a series of two-dimensional works:
Where:
TLS is Total Linear Space required to hang the exhibit
n is the number of works in the exhibit
p is the number of gallery walls available
w1 and w2, etc. are widths of individual works
T is the width of the title panel
q is the number of sections in the exhibit
S is the width of a section information panel
If you’re anything like me, you’d probably have more faith in this formula if you knew how it was developed. So here goes…
Start by thinking about a single piece of framed art on the wall and the space it needs to settle and not feel cramped. This will be a matter of taste and choice of label positioning, but one easy call is 1/2 the framed width of the piece on either side. The space between two works of widths w1 and w2 then is 1/2w1 + 1/2w2.
So here’s the space around one work (left) and the space between two works (right), when the spacing factor is 2, that is, each work occupies linear wall space equal to twice its width. If many of the works are 12 inches or smaller in width, this factor may produce a spacing that is uncomfortable for viewing by gallery visitors. When that is the case (or for any other aesthetic reason), the spacing factor may be increased to 2.5 or 3.
To generalize to the entire exhibit, add the linear widths (framed) of all pieces in the show (w1 + w2 + w3 + …..) and divide by the number of pieces (n) to give the average linear width (framed) of all pieces:
Average framed width = (w1 + w2 + w3 + ….. )/n
Adding in the spacing requirement, multiply this number by two to give the average linear wall length needed for each piece.
Average Linear Space Required (for each piece in the show) = 2 x Avg. framed width
Again, this same spacing factor [two] is a matter of taste and choice of position for label placement
Next, multiply by the number of pieces in the show (n) to yield the linear space required for all works:
Total wall length required to hang the art = n x Avg. Linear Space Required
This formula would result in art mounted too close to either end of the gallery wall. It can be made more accurate by adding one Average Linear Space Required for each usable wall in the gallery space. So if there are p usable walls:
Total wall length required to hang the art = (n x Avg. Linear Space Required) + (p x Avg. Linear Space Required)
Also, add in the width of a title panel (T) and the widths of any section information panels (S). So if there are q section panels required in the exhibit, the final formula is:
Total wall length required to hang the art = (n x Avg. Linear Space Required) + (p x Avg. Linear Space Required) + T + (q x S)
Inserting the calculations for Avg. Linear Space Required and simplifying we get:
Total Linear Space required to exhibit the art = ((n +p) x (2 x ((w1 + w2 + w3 + ….. )/n))) + T + (q x S)
Now it is usually desirable, as well, to be able to determine the number of works to mount on each wall of the exhibit. Assuming a four-sided exhibit space with walls of length L1, L2, L3 and L4, then the maximum number of works to be mounted on any one wall is…
Where:
n is the number of works in the exhibit
w1 and w2, etc. are widths of individual works
N is the estimated maximum number of works that can be hung on an individual wall
and
L is the length of the individual gallery wall in question
(take the whole number part of N and discard any remainder)
Then for four walls, the maximum number of works that can be exhibited is N1 + N2 + N3 + N4 (minus, of course the space required for Title and Section information panels)
Remember:
1. All of this provides estimates only (especially N, the number of works on any one wall); if the works vary greatly in width, additional juggling may be needed
2. Be sure all of your measurements are in the same units; if the widths of the works are in inches, then either convert that to feet or convert the lengths of gallery walls into inches (same if you’re working in cm and meters)