How to Present Artwork in an Exhibition: Think Beyond the Wall
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Tips for artists Vol 23
When you prepare artwork for an exhibition, think about more than the wall or plinth it will occupy. Consider what viewers see first, how close they can get and what else they encounter nearby. These choices can change how a work is experienced.
That question came into focus in February 2026, when Art Basel Qatar presented its first edition in Doha. The fair introduced an open-format exhibition across M7 and the Doha Design District, with gallery presentations responding to a shared curatorial theme rather than a traditional booth layout. Art Basel and Qatar Museums described the format in their announcements, and Visit Qatar confirmed the dates and venues.
You do not need to wait for a major fair to think spatially. Even a single work changes when it moves from the studio into a gallery, a temporary exhibition or a shared online presentation.
How to present artwork in an exhibition: start with the encounter
Before deciding how a work should be installed, ask what the viewer needs in order to meet it. Does it require distance? Is a small detail important? Does its scale become clear only beside a person or another object?
These are practical questions, not instructions for how anyone must interpret the work. They help you understand what the space can bring out—and what it might hide.
Check scale, light and distance
Make a quick plan showing the work’s dimensions and the space it needs around it. If possible, test a photograph, printout or simple mock-up in a room similar to the one where it may be shown.
Look at the work from the distance a visitor is likely to stand. Check whether glare, reflections or uneven lighting affect it. For a video or sound work, note what else might be heard or seen nearby. Small tests can reveal a problem before installation day.
Think about the works beside yours
If several works are shown together, their relationship matters. Repetition can create rhythm. A change in medium or scale can offer a pause. Two images that seem unrelated in the studio might create a useful tension when placed next to one another.
Try arranging your selected works in more than one order. Notice where the viewer’s attention slows, where it moves quickly and which work changes the meaning of another. You are not required to control the final arrangement; you are learning what possibilities the group contains.
What should an artist send to a curator or gallery?
A brief installation note can make your ideas easier to discuss. Include a clear image of each work, its title and date, medium, dimensions, and any essential requirements such as a power source, sound equipment, screen or viewing distance.
If the relationship between works matters, include a simple sketch or an installation photograph from an earlier presentation. Label suggestions as suggestions: a curator may find a different arrangement that brings something new to light.
A useful note is specific. “Needs space” is hard to act on; “allow approximately one metre on either side so the viewer can see the full projection” gives the gallery something to plan around.
Leave room for the work to change
An artwork may behave differently in each space. A proposal is a way to communicate what matters to you, not a guarantee that every detail will remain fixed.
For artists, thinking beyond the wall is part of presenting the work clearly. It helps curators and galleries understand its practical needs and its possibilities—and gives viewers a better chance of meeting it with attention.
At NNC Gallery London, we look closely at how artists make choices and how their practices develop.
Explore the artists featured by NNC Gallery and discover the current Challenge.
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