Would you hang an abstract piece of art as the artist intended?

Probably as the artist intended. Presumably you bought it because you liked the work as it was. My paintings are fairly representational so it would be strange to hang them differently but I usually give or sell them unframed so that is up to the owner.

If I give or sell you a piece of my art, it becomes yours and you can display it any way you like.

(I’m an illustrator, photographer, and designer — not really abstract art)

I’d hang it as the artist intended.

I am/was an artist.
I rarely got into abstract visual art. Although I experimented with several dozen pieces, as part of my college courses.

Most of my stuff was geometric patterns, with fire, liquid texture changes, and contrasting backgrounds.
I would say, that I did consider there to be a bottom, top, and desired/intended flow.

I was admittedly still a teenager, and I never felt like I produced anything (abstract,) that was more than esthetically pleasing.
Nothing had any heart in it.
I was just doing them, to try it out.

Fast forward, and most of my art is still drawn from my imagination. The difference, is that I decided to try to use certain color patterns, that I normally wouldn’t. Often using cold colors, on objects depicting warm concepts, and warm colors on cold concepts.

I produced a precise still life, of my left hand, using cobalts, and other metallic colors like gold, copper, and silver. The result was a REALLY nice. I also scaled it up, so I could try to include finger prints, and scars.

I originally drew it, I the position of my vantage point, looking at my palm, with my fingers naturally kind of bent.

I did want the viewer to sort of look at it in the same vantage. As if seeing their own hand, in a sort of transition. I suppose that would be difficult, if it were upside-down.

However. I have always thought that a piece should be looked at in different ways, and think that essentially a piece of art should hit each individual differently.

I have to think this is different with sculptures, as many pieces, have to deal with gravity.

With paintings, drawings, or really anything that is on a 2D medium, I think the owner of the piece should position it however it most heavily represents what they get from it.

There are exceptions, like say a rendering of an upside-down American flag, in which hanging it the way a normal flag would be, would totally change the piece.

I think of visual art, like music.
A song can produce extremely powerful emotions. Sometimes, it may be because a person thought some lyrics were different. Others connect deeply to rhythms, or tone.

I listen to a LOT of instrumental music. Many times, the song titles infer the artist’s thinking when producing the music, but the melody reminds me of something completely different.

When I play guitar, I do not sing, but I am sort of “speaking,” just with music instead of words.
As I pass through the evolution of a piece, I may get very sad during parts, or feel rejuvenated by others. Sometimes sort of saying something, and then expressing how I respond to it.

But any music, could be played backwards, and some would still be pleasing.
Obviously, some artists have old records that were intended to be played in reverse to give alternate meaning.

I would say, if you aquire a piece, that you should hang it as intended first, and then maybe change the piece every few months until you find your favorite way of viewing it, or in some cases if it may accent your other decor better in different positions.

In short, I do not feel there is a wrong way of enjoying art.

Really great question.

In a public space, how the artist intended: in my home, how it appeals most to me.

^I think that’s the way I feel about my stuff.
Not that I have ever sold anything, but I do have some stuff displayed in my old high school, and from some side projects.
But I like that.

I would put it whereever the damned hell I please, even if it is the wood chipper.

I’d hang it how it works for me. For example, if the artist intended for it to be on its own, on a large blank wall with a lot of space around it, I would hang it in a way that works in my home, with limited space, meaning it probably is not getting a wall of its own.

@jca2 I assumed that the OP meant something like hanging the image upside down or sideways. Of course, where on the wall or how much space is around it is the owners own determination.

@janbb same.

@janbb Me too! Actually, I guess if it was an abstract you could hang it upside down or sideways if you wanted to.

How would I know?

Yes of course I will, in respect to the artist. If however he or she doesn’t care, I would prioritize my own preferences.

I would hang the picture as the artist intended. The point of art is to allow us to see with the eyes of the artist, it’s not a collaboration.

@janbb. Oh, I see. Ok, I would probably hang it how I like it.

Once I buy it, it’s mine. I can hang it any way I want. Or I can throw it out, or burn it.

@elbanditoroso Exactly my thinking.

Really interesting to read all of the different responses. (Thanks!)

This question came after I spotted a painting in an Instagram post from an interior design account that I follow. I was curious and did a reverse image search. Two relevant hits came up.

The most recent one was another Instagram post of a local secondhand store. (Presumably where the interior designer picked it up.)

And an older Instagram post from the artist’s own personal account.

In this particular example, it would not have been immediately obvious to the end user (interior designer) what “should” have been the intended orientation. But it did get me thinking about this in general.