Answer:
The distance between each picture is 37 inches
Explanation:
We must find the separation between each picture knowing the total space they will occupy and their individual dimensions. We are not told if the distance between them is the same as that from the borders, we'll assume it is.
The total width of the wall is 17 ft=17*12=204 inches
Two pictures are horizontal and occupy 20 inches each, for a total of 40 inches
One picture is vertical and occupy 16 inches. This means the total space occupied by the pictures is 40+16=56 inches.
The difference between the total width of the wall and this distance will be equally spaced. This difference is 204 - 56 = 148 inches
There are 4 spaces to be equally sized: two between the pictures and two to the borders. The separation of each must be 148/4=37 inches
The distance between each picture is 37 inches