Paint the mural directly on the wall 2013

If you want a wall in your home to become the room's decor focal point, treat it as a canvas for a single work of art that takes up the entire wall. Historical examples of this include the Italian fresco, and Michael Angelo's paintings on the walls and ceiling of the Sistine chapel.
If you create a mural of an antique map or painting of classical art that covers the whole wall, you make the room feel larger and create a very strong ambiance in the room. You can paint the mural directly on the wall, or you can buy reproductions of famous paintings or maps that have been scanned and enlarged onto a giant poster. You can attach the poster to the wall like wall paper, and then cover the surface with crackle glaze and varnish to give it the look of antiquity.

Imagine Leonardo da Vinci's The Vitruvian Man as a whole wall. Imagine his Study for the Head of Ledo done in monochrome amber tones on a parchment colored wall.
Try to envision, Leighton's By the Sea, Waterhouse's Echo and Narcissus, or a close up of the face neck and hair of Botticelli's Birth of Venus the size of a whole wall.
The simplest furniture, sheer curtains, and potted flowers are all that would be needed to finish such a room. The decor focal point is so strong, that it is almost the only decoration you need.
On that note, if the picture is darker colored, like Monet's Water Lilies, the rest of the room should be a contrasting white or creme color; otherwise the mood in the room will become morose for lack of reflected light.
Giclee's Amalfi Coast makes it look as if you are walking out into an idyllic world.

 If you need to make a small or narrow room look bigger, this would be a good choice. Monet's Une Alee du Jardin, Givany, would brighten and uplift the end of a hallway.
Choose the wall most likely to fit the shape of the painting, and that won't be cluttered with other objects. A whimsical exception would be placing an oddly shaped clock on the wall you'd covered in a Dali.
Have fun with this!
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