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Populate your walls with these gorgeous mid-century, botanical, minimalist and Scandi-inspired works
Whether you’re faced with the task of brightening up bare walls or want to expand your ever-growing print collection, art for your home doesn’t have to cost a fortune.
Yes, plush rugs, colourful curtains and cheerful paint jobs can all elevate a space, but art work adds that personal touch that gives your home character. While an enjoyable afternoon spent at an antique market or browsing your local gallery can spark inspiration, sometimes you want something specific and, more importantly, affordable.
From culinary-themed pieces for your kitchen to floral designs that can liven up a living room, or sweet prints for a child’s bedroom, the choice is practically endless. When searching for pieces that complement your space, myriad retailers and independent artists are making the quest easier.
Whether it’s King & McGaw’s curated collection of famous works, artists or vintage magazine covers, the Tate’s exhibition prints or Desenio and FY’s contemporary selection of prints that start from just £10, retailers are making art more accessible for all. Meanwhile, the online space has given new, independent artists a platform (you’ve likely seen prints from Nephthys Illustrated and Tatiana Alida all over your Instagram feeds).
From independent designers creating unique prints to add character to your walls to retailers bringing the reprinted works of great artists – such as Picasso, Matisse and Jean-Michel Basquiat – into people’s homes for a fraction of the cost, we’ve found the best destinations for affordable artwork.
Taking into consideration the quality, finish, value for money and distinctiveness of these prints, we’ve featured everything from renowned works of art and photography to graphic posters and typographic designs. So, whatever your taste, there’s something for everyone.
Some have the option of being framed and most are available in an array of sizes to suit every wall space and room. If you’re renting and can’t put nails in the wall, we recommend Command strips, which you can find out more about in our gallery wall guide.
Of all the prints in our flat, this Nephthys Illustrated design receives the most compliments. Known for her distinctive style, which favours colour, bold motifs and typography, you’ve likely seen the independent artist’s unique prints all over your Instagram feeds, from the ‘pasta party’ range to cocktail prints.
This ‘Le Homard’ print features a lobster and lemons set on a blue checkerboard background, with blue typography. Instantly adding character to your wall, it’s available in A4, A3, A2 and A1 sizes, and the crisp print really pops in a matching red frame (find one from £9.95, Amazon.co.uk). If you’re after an affordable print that sparks joy in your home, Nephthys Foster’s website has a print for every taste.
One for the audiophiles and David Bowie fans, we love the vintage feel of this print from Fan Club, inspired by the Starman himself. The brand has drawn on an 1980s colour palette to create a design that makes a statement in any room. The print boasts abstract colours and Bowie's recognisable lyrics from the 1983 hit.
Two sisters are behind the independent British brand, which also creates tote bags and T-shirts. All of its works feature motifs, quotes and lyrics from musicians, including The Rolling Stones, Patti Smith, Talking Heads and Fleetwood Mac. The prints all come in A4, A3 and A2 sizes, and are a steal, costing from as little as £20.
This well-known oil on canvas painted by American artist Edward Hopper in 1942 depicts anonymous figures in an eerily lit downtown diner. It has since become synonymous with American Realism. Hopper painted both urban and rural scenes that reflected modern American life – Nighthawks is one of his most enduring pieces, reflecting what the artist saw as “the loneliness of a large city”.
The piece is available from King & McGaw’s vast range, which also includes works by artists Keith Harring, Jackson Pollock and LS Lowry, as well as vintage Vogue magazine covers. Founded in 1982, the retailer sells classic and contemporary art prints that are high quality and impressively affordable. Most of the prints come in a range of sizes and all have the option to arrive in a responsibly sourced and handcrafted frame. We love how King & McGaw is making famous art accessible to all.
Inject some botanical brightness into your living space, with this print from Swedish artist Astrid Wilson. Her bold and colourful prints are favourites on Instagram, with the Seoul piece just one in a series of intricate ‘flower market’ designs paying homage to various cities. Wilson fantasised about cities and places and their colour palettes, from Amsterdam to Lima.
Each design comes unframed in a range of sizes, and affordably priced between £28 and £50. The various styles have different colourways, from green tones to blue and red hues, so you can easily find one that suits your space and colour scheme.
Graphic designers and brothers Raphael and George Greeves draw from classical mythology and architecture for their digitally made designs that feature Greek goddesses, serpents, ancient civilisations and buildings.
Minimal yet bold in its colouring, this piece portrays the day’s last beams of sunlight – we put it up by the window for a nice sense of symmetry. Its matte finish with a slightly dimpled texture raises the image off the page, giving it a 3D quality. The brothers also design homeware, including plates, cushion covers and throws. This print comes unframed in an A3 size.
We love the Modern feel of this print from Reign & Hail. Inspired by Swiss mid-century graphic design, it gave our drab kitchen walls just the right amount of edge. The print is crisp and bold, on good-quality paper, and, to save you using Google translate, it reads “kitchen equipment facility”.
Reign & Hail create striking prints with an emphasis on typography, mostly in this mid-century style. An affordable option for some culinary-themed decor, the print comes unframed in a range of sizes including A1, A2, A3 and A4, with prices between £17 and £60.
Bringing a gallery into your home, the Tate has a wide selection of prints available to purchase from previous exhibitions and its collection, from Andy Warhol to David Hockney. This Matisse cut-out immediately gave character to our hallway, with its wide white border framing the image nicely.
Completed in 1952 – two years before the French artist's death – the piece is the second in a series of ‘blue nudes’, which saw Matisse, in his own words, “cutting directly into colour”. Tate offers the print in a range of sizes, and, from an extra £60, your print can be framed in black, white, gilt or oak.
Inspired by Eighties-era artist Jean-Michel Basquiat’s love of jazz music, his Trumpet painting is one of his most famous works. An acrylic and oil stick painting on canvas, it features an individual playing a trumpet while wearing a crown. An example of Basquiat’s signature style, there are bright colours, crossed-out words and references to Black cultural history.
The crown motif often appeared in his art, portraying his ambition to be considered a great artist, as well as challenging Western histories by depicting Black men as kings. Available in small, medium and large sizes, there’s the option of five different frames and mounting, helping to make it a centrepiece in your living space.
If you’re after good-quality photographic prints that don’t cost a bomb, independent galleries are often a good place to look. The Enter Gallery in Brighton sells rare and limited-edition artworks while also showcasing new up-and-coming artists.
At the top end of our price bracket, bring some 20th-century poolside glamour into your home, with this classic image by American society photographer Slim Aarons.
The two fabulous women sitting on loungers beside a teal-coloured pool in Palm Springs were captured by Aarons in 1970, and the photograph has since become a symbol of Modernism. This reproduction added the perfect amount of retro decor to our living space. It starts from £100 for a 20cm x 25cm unframed print and, if your purse stretches, is also available in larger sizes.
Give your walls a splash of retro magic, with this print from Hôtel Magique, a brand you’ve probably seen all over your Instagram feed. Founded in 2015 by Amsterdam-based creative Milou Neelen, her designs draw inspiration from vintage Parisian apartments, American motels and Wes Anderson movies, to bring a chic hotel vibe to your home.
Neelen brings her signature style to this print, with its bold typography and striking colours leaving you yearning for a holiday. The print comes unframed in A1, A2 and A3 sizes, or you can purchase it framed, with prices starting from £72 for the A3 size.
Inspired by precious moments shared around tables, independent illustrator Amelia Jayne’s prints provide a talking point in your home. From coffee-powered mornings to wine-fuelled evenings, the entire range has meticulous attention to detail, with the designs printed on museum-quality paper.
We gifted the Chaos and Catch Ups print to a friend who loved the feeling it evoked. Immortalising an evening around the table together, it features the perfect ingredients for a catch up: a bottle of red, olives, negronis, a card game and a plate of oysters thrown in for good measure.
Another print that’s unbiquitous on Instagram, Tatiana Alida’s cocktail range is a playful addition to any wall in your home. Featuring a red negroni with matching red “negroni please” typography, a yellow border complements the orange peel garnish. The design boasts a bold, colourful pigment, thanks to the high-quality giclee-style of printing.
If your preference is more for a margarita and matcha or maybe an aperol spritz and martini with olives, you’ll find those tipples in the range, too. Simple and fun, Tatiana Alida’s prints are perfect for adding a bit of personality to your four walls.
The perfect decorative piece for a car fan or Formula 1 fanatic, this print is a poster that was produced for the 1955 Grand Prix Formula One race held in Monaco. The Modernist-style features an enlarged red Formula 1 car with an open cockpit speeding ahead of its rival behind, while the French typography makes it a stellar memorabilia piece.
By the mid-20th century, the printing industry had perfected the art of colour lithography that made these widely distributed prints possible. King & McGaw’s reprinting is excellent quality and available in four sizes – small, medium, large and extra large – with the option to be framed and mounted.
Based in London Lucy Mahon creates playful yet classic art works to bring happiness into your home. Inspired by everything from day-to-day rituals to places that can bring nostalgia, you can find homages to New York and Los Angeles in her work, but the ‘Costa Del Hackney’ design is a bit closer to home.
Evoking long days in the park, at the lido or beer gardens, the homage to Hackney features a retro orange striped umbrella with blue typography. Beautifully printed and vibrantly coloured, it adds personal flaire to your abode.
Any of Nephthys Illustrated’s prints immediately brighten up a room, with the bold Le Homard lobster print adding character to walls, and nabbing our top spot overall. Astrid Wilson’s prints are similarly joy-inducing, while Amelia Jayne’s Chaos and Catch Ups design is a playful talking point.
Proving that renowned and good-quality art doesn’t have to blow the bank, King & McGaw’s prints are excellent investments, from Basquiat’s Trumpet work to Edward Hopper’s famous Nighthawks. With the retailer’s vast collections ranging from the classic to the contemporary, you’re bound to find something you love. The frames are excellent quality, the prints are crisp and we love that King & McGaw are making art available to all.
For more interiors inspo, check out our guide to the best washable rugs