There are lots of different ways to light up your home or office art work. Art lighting is almost an art unto itself. Art lights can make any office or home more enjoyable to be in for longer periods of time. A picture light can make a world of impact in a piece of artwork getting hung on a wall and left alone or being the highlight of a room. Lighting that painting over the fireplace is just as important as the art work itself. Good lighting not only focuses the viewers eye on the art, but also breathes life into it. This article highlights four different styles of lighting you can use to light your art.

Floor Lighting. These are small portable canisters that cast light upwards. You simply place the floor light in a position that casts light upwards towards the art piece or picture on the wall. They’re quite inexpensive, but can be quite obstructive if they’re placed on the floor. A suggestion would be to position some plants below the art piece, using the plant to hide the floor light. When this occurs you need to make sure that the plant itself does not obstruct the light that is directed at the wall.

Track Lighting. Track lights are light fixtures attached to a rail on the ceiling. They can be turned to focus light onto the art piece on the wall, or simply to add some area light to the wall. They can be made to shine upon multiple pictures and also provide room lighting at the same time. Track lights are also inexpensive and flexible. If you had to reposition an art piece, all you need to do is re-adjust your track light to direct the light at the new position on the wall.

Recessed Lighting. Recessed lights are fixed up and in your ceiling. They’re unobtrusive and can blend very well with your home decor. Recessed lights are built into your ceiling, so it can be quite expensive to install as some amount of remodeling work is required. Some recessed lights also have great capabilities that can be angled in different directions so that you can direct light directly upon the art.

Picture Lighting. Picture lights direct light at entire pieces of art. They can be attached quickly directly to the art frames or to the wall above or below the picture. Many picture lights have varying shapes that can complement the frame or the art work that it’s lighting. Using picture lights brings about its own set of problems. The electrical power cord that powers the light needs to be hidden from view, otherwise it will be an eyesore. There are a handful of ways to deal with this – either by inserting an electrical outlet behind the picture, such that the cord is hidden, or to have an electrician wire the device into your electrical system in the wall. The second option takes more planning, and needs to be planned during the construction of your home.