A reading nook is one of the few spots in a home designed purely for pleasure: a comfortable chair, a lamp at just the right height, a little table for a cup, books within reach. It is a place you go to stay for a while, often alone, with low light and no hurry. The art that suits it best shares that intimate scale. These are pieces seen up close, that invite you to glance up from the page for a moment and return, and that, together with the lamp and the books, create a small world within the room.
A scale for close looking
In a reading nook, art is seen from very close and almost always seated. Small and medium formats therefore usually work better than large ones: an A4, A3 or 30 × 40 cm print, or a little group of two or three, creates a sheltered feeling without overwhelming. Large works, by contrast, can strip the nook of its intimacy and make it feel like an extension of the living room.
That closeness also lets you enjoy detailed work: a fine line drawing, a botanical illustration, an etching, a nuanced photograph. Things that would be lost on a distant wall are discovered slowly here.
Where to hang it
The usual position is the wall beside or behind the chair. Behind, the work is seen as you arrive and as you get up, and it frames the nook for anyone looking from elsewhere in the room. Beside, it is seen from the chair itself when you turn your head, and keeps you company as you read. Both work; it depends whether you want the art to define the nook or accompany it.
As for height, since you are seated, the centre of the work can drop a little below the usual reference, to around 130–140 cm (51–55 in), so it sits within view while you read. We explain this in how high should you hang pictures?.
Arrangements that work
Some arrangements suit a reading nook especially well.
One piece above the chair. The calmest choice: a medium print, centred over the backrest or nudged slightly towards the lamp, giving the nook a focal point.
A small column. Two small prints stacked vertically beside the chair, echoing the line of a floor lamp.
A narrow ledge. Above or beside the chair, a ledge lets you lean prints, a book face out and a small object, changing them whenever you like. See how to display art prints on shelves and ledges.
Art among the books. If the nook sits beside a bookcase, a print leaning on one of the shelves among the books fits in very naturally.
Reading light
Reading nooks are usually lit by a floor or table lamp that creates a pool of warm light, so nearby art will be partly lit by it. Check how the work looks with the lamp on: warm tones tend to glow and some blues can dull. Watch for reflections in glazing too, especially if the lamp faces the work. An unglazed print or anti-reflective glass solves it. More in how to reduce glare on framed art.
What kind of images
A reading nook asks for calm. Wide-horizon landscapes that give a sense of space, soft abstracts of few forms, fine-lined botanicals, line drawings and serene photography all work beautifully. Very intense or busy images tend to work less well, as they compete with the concentration reading needs.
It is also a good place for something personal: a small work linked to a beloved book, a place or a memory. In such an intimate space, that kind of image makes perfect sense.
A small world
A well-made reading nook is almost a room within a room. Art at an intimate scale, in good light and without fuss, helps build that small world where you want to linger a little longer.
If you are looking for a piece for your reading corner, the small sizes and calm palettes in Bendíra’s collections, such as Quiet forms, keep you company without pulling you from the page.
Keep reading: Bedroom Wall Art Ideas for a Cosy Space and Creating Personal Spaces Through Art.