Vintage prints are a distinctive way to enhance any space and provide a link between the past and present. Whether you’re creating a sense of time and place in a traditional setting or adding warmth and history to a contemporary space, choosing the right size for your vintage wall art is essential.

Smaller options can adapt to more compact rooms like a home office or study, while the larger prints can create a dramatic impact in larger spaces like a living room or classroom. Another consideration when choosing the right size for your vintage print is how you plan to display your vintage wall art. If you are planning on a canvas print, you may want to choose the larger size if you don’t plan on framing your historic wall art. If you plan to have your vintage print framed, you may want to choose the smaller option to accommodate matting and frame size.

Also, whether you are buying historical wall art for yourself or as a gift is another factor to consider. If you are purchasing historic wall art online as a gift, you may consider getting it framed before you give it to the recipient so that they can immediately hang it. If you are buying it for yourself, you may not have decided exactly where you plan to display your piece or how you want to frame it. 

Not just which room or space in a home or office your vintage prints will be hung, but determining which wall is an important consideration. If your vintage wall art is going to be a focal point for the room, you may choose a larger vintage print that will draw the eye towards it immediately. If you plan to display your historic prints alongside other art or framed pictures, you may opt for a smaller size that won’t create a cluttered feeling.

Choosing the Right Frame and Matting

 

When you start exploring your sizing options, you should consider how you plan to frame your vintage prints. If you choose a smaller print, you can frame and matt your print to create a traditional aesthetic that pairs well with classic imagery. Matting is not only aesthetically beneficial, but it can also help protect your framed wall art print from moisture building up inside the frame and condensing or causing the structure to buckle.

Thoughtful framing options include both dark and light wood, as well as white and black paint. Lighter frames allow the image to pop, while darker frames can help highlight the bold colors found on the vintage print. 

If you’re looking to purchase vintage prints as a gift, the recipient will appreciate the ability to display their historic print right away without having to get it framed themselves. Larger maps may not be able to accommodate matts in their frames but can create a focal point and define a space.

Detailed VS General Historic Prints

Image Source: Historic Prints - Pittsburgh Pennsylvania Map Wall Art

More detailed depictions, including birds-eye perspectives or panoramic maps, are stunning when printed in larger sizes that highlight the unique details and artistry. These maps also bear distinguishing colors that are well suited to larger prints that create a real connection between the viewer and the imagery and can give them a sense of being in the past. Panoramic maps bear unique artistic flourishes, and depending on the artist, each vintage map wall art has a distinctive character.

More general maps are interesting because they have a more minimal aesthetic that can blend seamlessly into more contemporary spaces. More general maps like railroad, government, and religious maps also look great in larger sizes, though, when printed on smaller formats can become a subtle detail for any interior. These vintage maps are also enhanced when a thoughtful frame and matting utilize their smaller footprint while emphasizing the image.

There are no hard rules when it comes to choosing a vintage print with the ideal size, and you can explore options based on your own unique needs, the size of the wall you will be displaying your historical print on, or framing choices.

Make A Statement With Your Vintage Prints

Image Source: Historic Prints - Pittsburgh Pennsylvania Framed Map Wall Art

Vintage art prints give you the opportunity to make a bold statement with a large print paired with carefully chosen antique framed prints or canvas wall art prints. Perhaps the map is a hometown or has other personal connections when being selected as a gift. Historic prints are a great conversation starter and offer a glimpse into an area's past, which illustrates how it has evolved and developed during the course of its history.

No matter what style of vintage prints you choose, they all have unique characteristics that give every image a life of its own. The incredible detail found in panoramic maps by artists like Albert Ruger, created in the nineteenth century, bears a distinctive aesthetic that is immediately recognizable. These historic prints bring history alive and give the viewer a sense of connection to the past while demonstrating how that past shaped the region today.

Our selection represent unique works that have been carefully chosen for their distinctive imagery and historical significance. There are options available that represent every era of cartographical history and display the progression of the form. Some of the most distinctive historic prints include panoramic maps or birds-eye perspectives, which were produced to attract industrialists and workers alike to towns and cities across the United States and Western Europe.

Because birds-eye perspectives were not created to scale, the artists often took considerable license with accuracy and featured prominent local buildings, civic features, and economic or development opportunities.

Choose A Size That Matches the Space's Existing Aesthetic

If the room your displaying your historic prints in is more substantial than other spaces, you should opt for a larger print that will feel appropriate and not insignificant. If you plan to display a vintage wall art in a smaller room, a large print may feel out of place or be unable to accommodate framing for display. Also, if you choose a canvas print, you may consider pairing two similar historic prints to create a cohesive aesthetic.