Hygge your home with art

Although a challenge to pronounce, hygge is all about the simple pleasures in life and embracing a way of living that promotes wellbeing and togetherness. Creating those cosy and convivial atmospheres that typify the term is something that the artwork on your walls can help you to achieve.

Read on to find out how art can help you create a stylish and hygge look into your home, to not only enrich your surroundings, but also soothe your soul.

Why hygge with art?

The art of hygge is not only about creating an aesthetically beautiful, Scandi-inspired space, it’s about creating the right environment to relax the mind and nourish the soul. Of course, we all know that the right artwork selection makes a house a home, but studies have also showed that that enjoying art also reduces our stress levels. It can be a brilliant tool for maintaining a calming environment to help us switch off at home. So, selecting an artwork that creates a relaxing and cosy environment, ties in perfectly with the hygge approach to decor.

When choosing an artwork that will have a positive impact on your home, it is important to consider how the piece makes you feel and whether or not it is something you will cherish in years to come. Different styles, materials and mediums can stir up different emotions, so the key to surrounding yourself with positive-artworks is selecting works that reflect your dreams and desires. Waking up every morning to a piece of work that not only gives you a feeling of contentment, but also inspires your hopes for the future, will of course put a smile on your face and have have a positive impact on your home and wellbeing.

So, how can you hygge your home with art?

Winter is the perfect time to hygge-your-home, with the focus on family, cosiness and relaxation playing into the season’s feel good factor. To help you bring the hygge look into your home, we’ve collected some fail safe tips to follow:

1. Bring the outdoors, indoors

Scandinavian art draws on the abundance of natural beauty from the region, bringing nature indoors through the use of natural materials and textures within the home. Recreate this in your artwork selection by featuring serene landscapes, or the forests and mountains that cover so much of the beautiful Nordic countries. Alternatively, consider choosing sculptures, which incorporate natural materials such as wood, or handmade ceramics are also a brilliant and quirky way to bring natural textures into the home.

2. Natural, calming colours

To maximise cosiness and relaxation, warming and calming colours are popular in hygge decor, so to reflect this in your artwork, consider calming pastels and neutrals like greys, creams and browns. When looking at a potential pieces, consider whether it makes you feel comforted and warm – if the answer is ‘yes’ then its sure to be a hygge-hit! Decorating with a reduced palette in your home, not only means your artwork, furniture and accessories are sure to complement each other, but the easy on the eye decor is sure to inspire relaxation.

3. Let there be light

The art of hygge was developed as the Danes were surrounded in darkness throughout so much of the year. This led them to embrace the cosiness of fireplaces, candlelight, and in more recent times, fairy lights to decorate the home. You can replicate the feeling of intimate warmth through careful selection of artworks that help to bring that cosy glow into your interior.

4. Create a nook

Make sure that within your room layout, there is that one spot, which just calls out for you to curl up with a hot drink, book and a blanket. This is the perfect place, not only to decorate with art, but to accessorise with as many soft furnishings as possible – from fluffy rugs and comfy cushions, to blankets and throws – make sure that your accessories are luxuriously tactile.

5. Tell stories with your art

The ethos of hygge pulls away from the mass-produced and impersonal. Instead, it leans towards decor that tells a story, rooms which are filled with meaningful items – whether they were a gift from a loved one, that souvenir from your trip of a lifetime, or an artwork that brings a childhood memory to life. So, select your art from the heart, and you will not only stay true to the hygge lifestyle, but you are guaranteed to love it for years to come.

To help you bring hygge into your home, we’ve not only curated a collection of Scandi-inspired artworks, we’ve also created an inspirational Pinterest board to bring all the cosiness to life. So grab a hot drink (and preferably a blanket too) and let our hygge artworks warm you up!

When it comes to curating the home you want with extraordinary art, it’s always worth keeping your eyes peeled at an Affordable Art Fair to spot for the trends and aesthetics you love. With hygge in mind, you’ll soon stumble across the perfect piece that celebrates this cosy, comfy style. Explore our fairs and find your next Inspiration blog to get inspired ?

Main image: Alfhild Külper, ‘Fuzzy 17’, 2022, wool, UMANOA