10 Top Tips to Find the Perfect Landscape Art Inspiration
Discover the secrets to capturing the perfect landscape in your art. Learn how to explore the beauty around you, from local parks to majestic coastlines, and turn inspiration into breathtaking artwork. Whether you're a seasoned landscape artist or just starting, these tips will guide you in finding the perfect landscape to infuse your creations with natural wonder.
I have always loved landscapes and the natural world even as a child when I used to draw and paint all the time. As a contemporary landscape painter and plein air painter, I am drawn to colourful, vibrant landscapes. I am constantly seeking inspiration when I travel, mostly across the British isles that I call home.
Creatively reset with a walk in nature, take your own reference photos or simply enjoy peace and quiet. Here are some of my top sources of inspiration as a landscape painter as well as my top 10 tips for finding beautiful places right on your doorstep.
1. Look for the light
Ever noticed how a place looks and feels different, at different times of day? Light can effect our mood (ever heard of Seasonal Affective Disorder in the winter), but it can also completely alter the colours of the landscape, and bring out brilliant shadows, highlights. I particularly love how light filters through trees and grasses to create a little patchwork of dark and light on the ground.
This is all the same place - on a single day in just one Patagonia landscape!
2. Explore the changing seasons
Nothing warms my artistic soul more than seeing the complex rhythms and cycles of nature play out. The sun rises later, the leaves change slowly to orange and fall, flowers fade, and nature prepares for the winter. I find autumn to be the season that makes me feel calmest, and the one I always want to paint, no matter how hot or cold it is outside!
3. Take (Tons) of reference photos
My tip: don't just snap away and hope for the best, I've done this before and then I'm disappointed when looking for a specific reference point. Look for unique compositions, take the photo in both portrait, landscapes and square formats - you never know which one could inspire you later.
And most importantly, capture the little details that matter to you most. It could be a sapling emerging from the crumbling crater of a dead giant, the reflection of a willow on the river's surface. Capture those little moments, the colours. Take brief videos as memories.
4. Make a list of landscapes you want to visit
Whether you read about it in a book or scroll through it on Instagram, you'll likely come across plenty of places to explore. So write them down! Make yourself a list on paper or on your phone, even in a sketchbook, and you'll have your own little landscape bucket list to work through.
5. Get creative
Even in the midst of an urban sprawl, you can find nature if you look for it. Here are my top places to visit when I'm in the mood for greenery or open spaces.
6. Get lost on purpose
Not literally, but don't necessarily stick to the hiking paths or the tourist traps. Make sure you're safe, someone knows where you are, and set off in a different direction. There are countless beauty spots that are less well-known and are likely to be quieter and cleaner, with more chances to spot wildlife and have a peaceful spot to sit or ponder.
7. Write about it
Take notes about the smells, the sights, the colours. A camera is great for capturing a moment, but often the subtleties of colour and shadows are lost on a photograph. Whether you jot down your first impressions or write poetry, or do little doodles, creating a written account of the landscape can be hugely beneficial to your art practice.
8. Look to the past
There's a reason landscape painting remains popular even though we have a wealth of imagery at our fingertips. The Impressionists, Romantics, Pre-Raphaelites all wanted to capture the spirit of nature in their own unique ways. Visit local art galleries or research landscape painters throughout history to unlock your own inspiration.
Some of my favourite historical landscape painters include:
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Monet
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Edgar Payne
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Kyffin Williams
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John Constable
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J.M.W Turner
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Van Gogh
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Joaquin Sorolla
9. Read about it
From pocket guides on landscapes to poetry, Lonely Planet books, novels by Ernest Hemingway or travel writers, there's plenty of literature to get immersed into the landscape of your choice. Whether you love roaring falls or sublime mountain landscapes like Nan Shepherd, you'll find the right title to inspire you.
10. Travel, always
I don't mean grand cruises or epic excursions. We all have work, financial and family commitments, but that doesn't mean we can't travel in our own way. Try looking at the landscape closer to home, seek inspiration from friends and family, or connect with expats in your community.
Landscape Painting Collections
Over the last few years I've worked on a number of landscapes in collections, inspired by different places, moods and personal ideas. Browse through the galleries and find out more about each collection, or browse the shop to see which are current landscape paintings for sale.
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