Screws and screws with masonry anchors for heavy items are your best choice for hanging things on plaster walls without picture rail.
How to hang heavy stuff from adobe plaster walls.
For lighter items simply screwing into the plaster with a 1 1 4 drywall screw is usually enough to get the job done.
Simply hanging something heavy on a plaster wall can result in damage to the wall and the object if you don t tap into the supporting structure behind the plaster.
Make sure you leave half an inch out of the wall so you have space to hang your artwork.
The best option mostly.
As mentioned earlier the wall stud is where the wooden lath attaches to the wooden frame behind the plaster.
Adhesive picture hooks are the best way to prevent damage when hanging a picture but pre drilling the hole will usually prevent cracks and chips from forming as well.
Therefore it s the strongest part of the wall and the ideal place to hang pictures from.
Plaster walls have a tendency to crack and crumble if you attempt to hammer a nail directly into the wall.
Though there are several methods of locating studs or supports behind the wall the most reliable is using a magnetic stud finder.
How to hang heavy things on plaster walls using a wall stud.