Art Between Windows: Check Curtains, Frame Fit and Sun

Move the curtains before measuring the wall

The strip between two windows can look like an obvious place for a picture until you open the curtains. Gathered fabric, trim and the way you use the windows may leave less space than the bare wall suggests. Measure the proposed frame against both curtain positions before deciding what will fit.

Then check the daylight. An arrangement that fits mechanically may still be a poor place for a paper print if direct sun crosses it.

Record the narrowest usable gap

Start with the distance between the inner window trims. That is the nominal wall width, not automatically the space available for the art.

Open and close the curtains as you normally would. Look at where the fabric rests, including folds that gather on the inner side of each window. Repeat the check at the height and depth of the proposed frame. Also operate the window handles and any nearby door.

Frame It Easy's guide to framing around fixed structures recommends allowing for curtains and door movement and using the outside frame dimensions. Use that observation to check your own opening rather than copying a frame size from a room photograph.

The windows and frame stay in the same positions in both panels. Only the curtains change. This is a conceptual comparison, not a measured room or a light-exposure test.

Work through a width example

Suppose the wall between the trims is 28 inches wide. In one curtain position, the gathered fabric occupies 6 inches of that wall on the left and 5 inches on the right. The remaining clear width is 28 − 6 − 5 = 17 inches.

If you choose an additional 2-inch clearance on each side for this example, the frame-width allowance becomes 17 − 2 − 2 = 13 inches. A frame with a hypothetical outside width of 12 inches fits that particular allowance. The chosen clearance is an example, not a required installation distance or a guarantee that fabric will stay still.

Use your own measurements in the same sequence. If a different curtain position leaves less room, use that smaller usable width. Measure the complete frame, not only the print inside it; the guide to check paper and frame dimensions explains that distinction.

Check daylight before choosing paper art for this spot

The Canadian Conservation Institute's basic guidance for works on paper advises avoiding positions exposed to sunlight from windows or skylights. It also explains that light damage cannot be reversed. Glazing does not make every window-adjacent position suitable for a paper print.

Look at the proposed location during the times you use the room, including when you leave curtains open. If you see a sunbeam crossing the spot, choose another wall for the print rather than treating a glazing label as a complete solution. A check on one day does not establish the location's exposure through every season.

Choose one work or a small stack only after those checks

One portrait-oriented work can give a narrow gap a clear focus. A small stack may suit related works if both the width and total height fit without interfering with window use. Neither option needs to fill the wall from top to bottom.

Compare the actual frames with paper templates held in place. For a stack, add all outside frame heights and the chosen gaps, then check both ends of the grouping. Keep the complete artwork visible rather than cropping an image to force it into the available strip.

The guide to arrange one, two or three prints can help with the relationship between the works. The deciding questions here remain specific to the windows: do the curtains move freely, does the whole frame fit, and is the location appropriate for the paper?

Keep those measurements with your frame choice before buying or marking the wall.