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In the contemporary realm of painting, artists often dabble in styles inspired by past artistic movements.
One genre that has particularly strong roots in the past is landscape painting.
What is Landscape Painting?
Giorgione, “The Tempest,” c. 1505 (Photo:Wikimedia Commons, Public domain)
Landscape paintings can depict a variety of options, such as mountains, forests, rivers, and beaches.
They often offer a wide view of the scene, and usually place some focus on the sky.
Artists choose landscapes as their subjects for a variety of reasons.
Pieter Bruegel the Elder, “The Hunters in the Snow,” 1565 (Photo: Kunsthistorisches Museum viaWikimedia Commons, Public domain)
Famous Landscape Paintings
Giorgione,The Tempest,c.
Even with such prominent characters, this piece is considered a prime example of early landscape painting.
El Greco,View of Toledo,c.
El Greco, “View of Toledo,” c. 1596–1600 (Photo: The Met viaWikimedia Commons, Public domain)
Unlike his other pieces, however, this painting portrays a landscapenot a portraitin the foreground.
Notice the Roman ruins on the horizon!
While the figures play a primary role in the piece, the landscape is also in focus.
Claude Lorrain, “Pastoral Landscape: The Roman Campagna,” c. 1639 (Photo: The Met viaWikimedia Commons, Public domain)
Through the thick fog, jagged cliffs and rocky mountains topped with trees emerge in the distance.
Like its counterparts, thiswoodblock printpresents a unique view of Mount Fuji.
J. M. W. Turner,Rain, Steam and Speed The Great Western Railway,1844
J.M.W.
Thomas Gainsborough, “Portrait of Mr and Mrs Andrews,” 1748–1740 (Photo:Wikimedia Commons, Public domain)
These include towering trees, swirling clouds, and rolling hills.
In a letter to his brother, Theo, van Gogh describes the painting.
In large-scale works, she constructs landscapes that are metaphors for the intangible forces that drive us.
Caspar David Friedrich, “Wanderer Above the Sea of Fog,” c. 1817 (Photo: Hamburger Kunsthalle viaWikimedia Commons, Public domain)
Luiza Niechoda
Photo:Luiza Niechoda
Polish artistLuiza Niechodasimplifies landscapes with her pixelated style.
Inspired by the Pacific Northwest and Romantic artists like Friedrich and J.M.W.
Turner, she creates striking renditions of verdant forests and misty mountainous backgrounds.
John Constable, “The Hay Wain,” 1821 (Photo: National Gallery viaWikimedia Commons, Public domain)
Books About Landscape Painting
Want to expand your knowledge about landscape painting?
Check out some of these books.
(Making a purchase viaBookshophelps support independent bookstores.)
Katsushika Hokusai, “South Wind, Clear Sky from Thirty-Six Views of Mount Fuji,” 1830 (Photo:Wikimedia Commons, Public domain)
Thomas Cole, “View from Mount Holyoke, Northampton, Massachusetts, after a Thunderstorm—The Oxbow,” 1836 (Photo: The Met viaWikimedia Commons, Public domain)
J.M.W. Turner, “Rain, Steam and Speed – The Great Western Railway,” 1844 (Photo: National Gallery viaWikimedia Commons, Public domain)
Claude Monet, “Impression, Sunrise,” 1872 (Photo: Musée Marmottan Monet viaWikimedia Commons, Public domain)
Paul Cézanne, “Mont Sainte-Victoire with Large Pine,” c. 1887 (Photo: Courtauld Institute of Art viaWikimedia Commons, Public domain)
Vincent van Gogh, “Wheat Field with Cypresses,” 1889 (Photo:Wikimedia Commons, Public domain)
Photo:Erin Hanson
Photo:Crystal Liu
Photo:David Ambarzumjan
Photo:Jennifer L. Mohr
Photo:Blue Smith
Photo:Remington Robinson
Photo:Ariel Lee
Photo:Luiza Niechoda
Photo:Rachel Cassiani
Geometric landscape from “Acrylic Landscapes: Reimagining Mountains as Polygons” (Photo: Elyse Dodge | My Modern Met Academy)
