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Salon-style hang
Salon style describes the crowded, floor-to-ceiling walls of the Paris Salon exhibitions, where paintings used every available space.
Salon-style hang, schematic. Shapes are drawn for illustration.
What the sources say
| Point | Detail | Source |
|---|---|---|
| First exhibit | In 1667 the Academie royale de peinture et de sculpture held its first semi-public exhibit at the Salon Carre | Wikipedia |
| Hang | Paintings were exhibited floor to ceiling, using every available space | Wikipedia |
| Jury | A jury was introduced in 1748 | Wikipedia |
| Term | The term salon style describes the crowded, floor-to-ceiling walls | Sotheby's |
| Admission | A highly selective jury of academics decided entry and prioritised history painting | Sotheby's |
For wall art
Neither source gives a modern spacing or hanging method; using the term for a home gallery wall is our own reading, and the gallery wall guides give the practical figures.
Where the sources stop
Wikipedia's page on salon-style hanging and a museum insights page could not be fetched. The Wikipedia entry on the Paris Salon used here gives the dates and the floor-to-ceiling hang, and neither source used gives a modern hanging method such as spacing or grids, so none is stated here.
Sources
- Wikipedia: Salon (Paris) (fetched 2026-11-12)
- Sotheby's: the Paris Salon's outsize impact on art history (fetched 2026-11-12)
Figures from these pages are paraphrased; each page was fetched and read on 2026-11-12. Where two sources differ, both are shown.