As the series progressed, I became less interested in what I called ordinary light. I wanted to achieve greater luminosity and to convey a sensation of glowing light. To do this, my color choices became more interpretive. The blues of the atmospheric perspective are replaced by warmer colors such as pinks, yellows, oranges, and red-violets.
23 Best Tips for Painting a Stunning Landscape in 2023
Painting a landscape has never been easier with our tips for beginners! So, how do you paint landscape scenery? We’ll discuss working with the most popular paint mediums of oil, watercolor and acrylic.
According to Khamidovich, et. al. in their article for the Journal of Critical Reviews, painting landscapes is integral to human expression, where “In a landscape work, a person sings about his personality, intellect, inner feelings through images and creates an image of nature.”
So, you want to learn how to paint landscapes for beginners step by step? Follow these tips to create the gorgeous imagery of your dreams and the world around you.
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- Learn From Experienced Artists
- Painting a Landscape With Acrylics
- Painting a Landscape With Watercolors
- Painting a Landscape With Oil Paint
1. Join a Local Art Class
What are the basic rules for painting a landscape? World-class hosts are waiting to teach you the best methods and new skills to create gorgeous landscapes.
Look for art classes in Los Angeles, art classes in NYC, art classes in Chicago or art classes near you. You’ll be amazed at how much fun and useful it can be to take instruction from skilled artists.
2. Try Paint and Sip
Dip your brush into lovely colors while you sip on your favorite adult beverage as you learn how to paint a landscape on canvas. That is the beauty of paint and sip — you can get a little tipsy and still make a beautiful piece of art!
Try paint and sip in Atlanta, paint and sip in Portland, paint and sip in Boston or paint and sip near you. Enjoy a night out with your friends and further your painting skills while you’re at it.
3. Join Online Painting Classes
If leaving your house doesn’t sound like your preferred method for learning how to paint a landscape on canvas (after all, you’re looking for advice on the internet), then how about online painting classes?
You’ll get the full instruction experience without having to get off your own very comfy couch — and you get to choose the snacks.
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4. Get Back to Geometry
By turning trees, shrubs, mountains, clouds or any other such distinguished shapes in the scenery into geometric shapes like rectangles and ovals with your pencil, you’ll give yourself a guide for your painting and the placement of each will turn out more accurate to the space than if you tried to recreate each individual detail.
When painting a landscape, directing lines is a technique professional artists use to guide the viewer’s eyes to the landscape in the distance, such as including shapes and objects like fences or logs angled towards the background of the painting.
Bonus Tip: Palette knives are useful more than just for mixing colors. If you’ve ever watched an episode with professional artist Bob Ross, you know that palette knives can be used to add texture-like edges and defined lines to your artwork.
5. Study Color Theory
Value distribution involves distinguishing parts of the painting (the sky, grass, distant mountain range, etc.) by the hues and shades of the colors you use there — or by the color temperature.
The temperature is a spectrum from cool colors like blue and green to warm colors of yellows and reds. If you mix a little of a warm color into an area that is mostly cool, it makes it a little warmer and the opposite works with mixing cool colors into a warm area.
This is another way of changing the value distribution when painting a landscape, rather than the simpler version of mixing white to make a lighter hue or black to make a darker hue.
It can also be a creative way to give grass the amber glow of an autumn afternoon or turn the horizon into twilight instead of midnight or broad daylight.
Painting a Landscape With Acrylics
6. Apply a Base Layer
Painting the canvas a base color, such as yellow, before you begin the landscape itself, helps to give the work a unified tone. You can also use a primer-like product called Gesso.
If someone holds it up to the light, it will have a nice glow of that single color, rather than appearing paper-thin. It’s the same principle as coating your walls or nails with a primer before adding your color of choice.
7. Shading
Value distribution can be useful for painting a landscape with shaded areas or objects halfway in shadow. Start by outlining the shape of the shadow cast by taller objects and paint them a dark or middle value (hue) of gray — or gray mixed with the color of the ground (eg. green for grass).
Then do the same with the areas of the painting in the light, but with lighter hues. This will show a definition between areas in the shade and areas in the light.
For objects half in the shadow and half in the light, you can use color pairs — two colors that look well opposite each other, which is how to paint depth with acrylics.
8. Four-Value Studies
Before painting your landscape, try to recreate the image with a four-value study, which is a smaller version done simply with black, white and a variety of gray hues.
This will help develop your sense of space division and guide you toward the way you want to use value distribution in your final version.
9. Background Before Foreground
Wondering how to paint a landscape with acrylics? It will make your art ideas come more easily if you start your acrylic landscape by painting the background first, then the larger aspects of the painting, and end with the minute details.
10. Damp Paper Towels
Damp paper towels are good for a lot of things! You can use them to clean a mistake from the canvas before the paint dries or to soften the lines on your acrylic landscape.
11. Paint Layers
When painting a landscape, it is important with acrylics to do a few coats to get the colors to truly pop out, especially if you’re using some of the more cost-effective painting sets.
Without multiple paint layers, the results may be a bit thin and the colors won’t appear as vibrant as you may have hoped.
Understanding Composition
The layout of a landscape painting can make or break the impact it has on viewers. Look for how the artist uses elements like the rule of thirds or the golden ratio to direct your gaze. These are classic techniques that can subtly guide the viewer’s eye to the painting’s focal point. For example, leading lines, such as a river or path can serve as guides, moving your eyes through the painting and inviting you into the scene. Likewise, the use of framing elements, like trees or mountains, can create a natural border, directing focus toward the main subject.
The way elements are balanced in the painting also speaks volumes. Perfect symmetry might bring a sense of peace and stability, while an asymmetrical balance could add a level of tension or intrigue. Don’t overlook the ‘negative spaces’ either. These areas contribute to the overall composition, providing breathing room that compliments the focal points.
“The Oxbow” oil painting by Thomas Cole, 1836
Color and Emotional Resonance
Colors aren’t merely aesthetic choices; they also can carry significant emotion. From warm hues like reds and oranges that evoke feelings of passion to cooler tones like blues and greens that induce a sense of calm, each color serves a purpose. Artists intentionally choose color palettes to resonate with certain viewers and create specific atmospheres.
Complementary colors, which are opposites on the color wheel , can create vibrant, eye-catching scenes. On the flip side, analogous colors, which are close together on the color wheel, often produce a more harmonious effect.
Another fascinating aspect to consider is the intensity of color. Saturated colors can add drama and attract attention, while more subdued or muted palettes might convey introspection or even sadness. It’s not just about a single hue, but how a mix of colors works together to tell a greater story.
“Starry Night Over the Rhône” oil painting by Vincent van Gogh, 1888
Texture and Technique
Texture and technique in landscape painting are like the voice in a song, shaping how the message is delivered and felt. They can add layers of complexity, creating dimension that invites us to take a closer look. From the grainy feel of sand to the smooth surface of a lake, different techniques capture different aspects of nature.
One captivating method is impasto, where paint is laid on an area of the surface very thickly. When done by a skillful hand, impasto can make you want to reach out and touch the canvas. It adds a three-dimensional quality, making the scene jump out and interact with the viewer.
Dry brushing is another technique that creates a different kind of texture. Here, a paintbrush with very little paint is dragged across the canvas. The resulting texture is rough, capturing the essence of coarse surfaces like tree bark or rocky terrain.
Then there’s glazing , a technique that involves applying thin layers of transparent paint on top of dry layers. This adds depth and luminosity, subtly changing the appearance of underlying colors. It’s often used to create atmospheric effects like mist or to portray shifting light conditions.
“A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte” by Georges Seurat, 1886
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